Destiny
by rizandace
Summary: Sequel to my story "Connected!" Arthur knows about Merlin's magic, but their problems aren't over yet. There are dissenters stirring up trouble in the palace, and new magical threats outside the walls as well. Rated T
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: This is the sequel to "Connected." If you haven't read it, go check it out and meet us back here! I hope you choose to review that story even though it's already done! And review this one too! I hope you enjoy!  
**

**This is set a month or so after the events of "Connected." Please enjoy!**

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"You're late _again_," Arthur said, without looking up from the papers on his desk. "I know you're not technically just a servant anymore, but _you_ were the one who said you still wanted to bring me my breakfast in the morning, so – "

Arthur finally looked up, and stopped short. "What the hell happened to _you_?"

Merlin was standing in the doorway holding a tray with Arthur's food on it. He looked a mess – his clothing was rumpled and torn, and there was a shadow along his jawline that suggested a future bruise.

Merlin's face turned bright red. "Nothing." He came forward and set down the tray on Arthur's desk.

The king sighed. "You're a terrible liar, Merlin."

"Says the man who didn't know I was a sorcerer for six years."

Arthur glared. "I'm still within my rights to punish you for withholding the information."

"Well, as your official adviser," Merlin began, taking a seat across from Arthur, "I _advise_ you to just drop it."

"Did somebody punch you?" Arthur asked bluntly. Merlin was silent. "Who?" Arthur insisted.

"It's not important."

"If you're being attacked…"

"It's only to be expected, Arthur," Merlin said, voice resigned. "Magic has been feared in Camelot for a long time – not everyone is going to turn around and accept it immediately."

Arthur's eyebrows knit together. "I've given you my public support – if that's not good enough for the people, then…"

"But that's just it, Arthur. Everyone knows how you've thought about magic in the past, and all of a sudden you change your mind?"

"So?"

"_So_, half of Camelot is convinced I've got you bewitched."

"I didn't really think about how difficult this would be for you," Arthur said, sighing. He felt guilty enough that he didn't even comment when Merlin leaned forward and took a piece of bread off Arthur's plate, biting into it before responding.

"It's better than the alternative, Arthur."

"How can you say that? You're walking around getting taunted and attacked by people all over the place."

"Yeah, but I don't care what they think. I care what _you_ think."

"Is it really worth it?"

"_Yes_," Merlin said, so firmly that Arthur froze for a moment, staring at his friend. "Life isn't easy at the moment, but it was way worse, lying to my best friend every day."

"I am glad to know the truth, I suppose."

"So I'll get through this. People will come around eventually," Merlin said kindly. "For now, I've just got to show them they have no reason to fear me."

"I don't like it," Arthur said quietly.

Before Merlin could respond, another knocking came on the door to the king's chambers.

"Come in," Arthur said, biting into his breakfast. Gwaine pushed the door in.

"Your majesties," Gwaine said, bowing with a mocking expression in his eyes.

Merlin glared. "I _told_ you not to call me that." Gwaine had been shocked just like everyone else to learn that Merlin had magic, but he had kneeled over in laughter when he had learned of Merlin's identity as Emrys. Since then, he had been bowing to Merlin in the hallways, to both Merlin and Arthur's annoyance.

"Princess, Lord Samuel wishes to speak with you."

Arthur and Merlin shared a look. "Fantastic," Arthur said, frowning.

Lord Samuel was an old adviser of King Uther, and the most staunchly against the use of magic in Camelot. He had been something of a rallying point for the dissenters. Arthur may have been king, but unless he wanted to banish or kill his advisors, he had to cooperate with them to some degree.

"Get Corwin to polish my armor, would you?" Arthur said to Merlin as he made his way to the door.

"Or _I_ could do it. It would take me far less time."

"_You_ need to get yourself cleaned up," Arthur said, glaring. "Gwaine, you make sure Merlin goes and sees Gaius about that bruise."

"Yes, sire," Gwaine said, so busy looking at Merlin in concern that he forgot to call Arthur 'princess.'

"I'll see you both later," Arthur said, going to the door. "Time to deal with Sam."

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**Author's Note: Well? Thoughts about the first chapter?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: A few notes - I am significantly more busy with life now than I was when I was working on Connected, so unfortunately we can expect less frequent updates. I will still do my very best but it will be a little more challenging. I do hope you all stick with me and keep the reviews coming!**

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Gwaine walked forward and looked over Merlin's generally disheveled appearance. "Who?" he asked simply.

"Lord Phineas and a couple of his guard friends."

"In other words," Gwaine said, walking with Merlin to the door. "On Lord Samuel's orders."

"We don't know that," Merlin said, sighing. Walking down the corridors nowadays was exhausting by itself – whether glaring or merely curious, everyone was staring at him.

"Sure we do. You just didn't want Arthur to know," Gwaine said, looking sideways at his friend. "Why don't you fight back?"

Merlin only shrugged.

"I'm serious," Gwaine continued, pausing to glare at a guard who was looking at Merlin like a dirty rodent. "You could blast all these losers to bits easily, right?"

"That's not going to be helpful in convincing Camelot I'm a good guy," Merlin said. "I'm not using magic to retaliate."

Gwaine looked at him, admiration on his face. "I don't know how you do it."

Merlin pushed the door open to Gaius's chambers as he responded. "That's easy. I'm not doing it for myself."

Gwaine grumbled as he turned away. "Arthur is one lucky guy to have you as a friend."

"Oh, and one day he'll know it," Merlin said, smiling as Gwaine walked back down the corridor.

Gaius looked upset yet resigned when he saw Merlin's disheveled appearance. Corwin, the young servant, was in the chambers as well, helping Gaius sort through some ingredients for potions.

Since Arthur had given Merlin the extra responsibilities of adviser, Corwin had taken on a lot of Merlin's old chores. He was a good young man, full of an innocent eagerness to help.

"If you've got the time, Corwin, Arthur needs his armor polished."

"Oh, yes! Yes, of course, right away." Corwin scampered from the room.

"Merlin, this has got to stop," Gaius said, putting a hand under Merlin's chin to look at the bruise. He looked at Merlin sternly, and the young sorcerer responded, seemingly offended.

"I can't help it!" Merlin said. "I'm not asking these people to attack me."

"Does Arthur know?" Gaius said.

"Yes."

"And he hasn't done anything?" Gaius seemed shocked.

"He's tried, but I won't tell him who it is attacking me, and he can't very well punish people on suspicion alone."

"You should let him help you," Gaius admonished.

"In the long run, showing them I harbor no ill will can only help."

Gaius pursed his lips, looking still concerned. "I trust you, Merlin, but I'm asking you to be careful.

"I will be."

Merlin was doing a fairly good job underplaying his magic. He used it occasionally, but he avoided a spectacle. Slowly, if people saw that he was the same loyal subject of Camelot as he had always been, they would be forced to accept that magic itself was not evil.

* * *

"You need to come to a banquet with me tonight," Arthur said to Merlin on a cloudy morning a few days later.

"Seriously?"

"Things have quieted down, haven't they?" Arthur asked, looking intently at Merlin.

"Yes, a bit, but… standing in front of all those people…"

"Sitting, actually. You'll be there as a member of the court, not as a servant."

"Arthur!" They had been walking down towards the training grounds, but at this Merlin stopped, grabbing Arthur's arm. "I can't."

"Of course you can," Arthur said.

"Listen, I appreciate this, I do," Merlin said, keeping his voice low. "But you're going to make too many enemies for yourself. I – I can't let you do that on my behalf."

Arthur sighed. "You've saved my life more times than I can count. I can't – _not_ – stand up for you now."

"And you're a good friend for it, Arthur. I just worry you're pushing everyone too hard on this one."

"You can sit at the edge of the table. I'll put Gwen and Lord Samuel on either side of me so they'll see I'm not placing you above my family or the nobility."

Merlin still looked skeptical.

"Listen to me," Arthur said, taking another step closer to Merlin. "It took a while, but everyone accepts Guinevere as their Queen, now. If Lord Samuel can accept that, then eventually he'll accept you, too."

Merlin was not entirely convinced, but he nodded. "Alright."

"Good!" Arthur said, smiling and standing up straight. "Time for training!"

Merlin scowled.

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**Author's Note: Thanks!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: I'm feeling a bit apathetic about this story thus far. I have some really good ideas for later on but I'm having trouble figuring out how to get there. Does anybody have any theories about how this story is going to go? Any suggestions? Thanks for your support!**

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It was more than a little annoying, not using magic during training sessions with the knights. Gwaine and Arthur in particular enjoyed sparring with him, self-important smirks on their faces –

"I can't help it!" Gwaine had said once. "Knowing I've got the most powerful person in the world backed into a corner… there's something appealing about that."

"I _could_ throw you to the ground without raising a finger," Merlin had responded, raising his eyebrows in suggestion.

Almost all of Arthur's knights were supportive of Merlin at this point. There were the round-table knights, who of course all counted Merlin a good friend. The others had been slightly skittish at first, but it was impossible not to recognize Merlin's unwavering loyalty and friendship with the king if you spent enough time around them.

Only a small group of knights were disapproving, but they kept their disquiet to themselves. These knights, Sir Timothy and Sir Reagan, were in league with Lords Phineas and especially Samuel, and formed the bulk of the inner dissenters.

Arthur and Merlin were aware of Sir Timothy and Sir Reagan's allegiance, but Arthur couldn't do anything about it if they didn't outwardly oppose the king.

Training went as well as it ever did, with Gwaine and Percival laughing while Arthur's sword kept freezing in his hands as Merlin, eyes simmering a light gold, continued to back away from the advancing king.

"Cheat!" Arthur growled, somewhat amused.

"Well you won't let me defend myself with a sword, so what choice have I got?"

"Gwaine?" Arthur said, looking over his shoulder and raising his eyebrows. With pseudo-solemnity, Gwaine presented a blunt-edged practice sword to Merlin.

"What? You can't be serious." Merlin took the sword awkwardly, holding it up in distaste.

"Defend yourself," Arthur said with a smile. And so Merlin did, bringing the sword up. Back in Ealdor, he and Will used to spar with wooden swords and then later with real blunt swords – Merlin, for a peasant, knew at least a basic understanding of sword play.

But, of course, he was nothing compared to Arthur. He managed to hold off three, four, five blows, and then Arthur narrowed his eyes, bringing his full skill into the fight.

Before Merlin knew what was happening, his sword had gone flying out of his hands, to land on the compact dirt a few feet away.

Gwaine and Percival applauded, and Arthur raised his eyebrows. "Impressive," he said.

"Alright, there's no need to mock me," Merlin said, going to pick up the sword.

"He's _not_," Gwaine said, disbelieving laughter in his voice. "You lasted almost long enough to be considered for knight training."

They all laughed out loud at the look of abject horror on Merlin's face.

"Relax," Percival said, clapping Merlin on the shoulder. "Nobody would ever make you be a knight."

"Or _let_ you," Arthur broke in. "Can you imagine?" The image brought on a fresh peel of laughter from the gathered knights.

"But, honestly, Merlin, why didn't I know you could handle a sword?" Arthur asked curiously.

Merlin shrugged. "It's not something I advertise. Besides, you've never given me a sword before now."

"Yeah, instead I left you unable to defend yourself in countless dangerous situations," Arthur grumbled, a hint of darkness creeping into his tone.

"I wasn't undefended, Arthur," Merlin said, raising his hands. "I had my magic."

"Yes, well, I didn't know that, did I?"

"Oh, come on. No need to feel guilt so retrospectively," Merlin said, handing the sword back to Gwaine. "Back to training, then? Or did you want to duel on _my_ terms?" Merlin grinned wickedly, and Arthur rolled his eyes, secretly grateful that Merlin was changing the subject.

"I don't even _have_ magic, idiot."

"Sure you do, prat," Merlin responded.

Arthur's mouth dropped open. "Excuse me?"

Merlin opened his mouth to respond, with Gwaine, Percival, and a few of the other knights listening with interest.

At this point, Sir Timothy stepped forward.

"I don't mean to interrupt, Your Majesty, but might we get back to training?" His voice was pompous and falsely subservient, and he gave a pointed glare to Merlin as he spoke.

Arthur glanced at Merlin and raised his eyes, and then turned back to Sir Timothy.

"That's not entirely your call to make," Arthur said. "However, we should continue training. Let's get into groups of two and get to work."

Sir Timothy smirked self-importantly at his friend Reagan, and Merlin fought to keep his jaw from clenching. Sure, Merlin himself wasn't always subservient and dutiful to Arthur, but at the end of the day, he respected him immensely. These knights weren't respectful at all, and Merlin couldn't stand it sometimes.

Gwaine stepped forward. "Don't worry about these guys. Arthur can take care of himself."

"No, he can't," Merlin said. "He needs me."

Gwaine grinned. "Of course he does. And it doesn't matter what anybody else thinks about it."

And Merlin wanted to be comforted by Gwaine's words. He wanted to believe that Sir Timothy and Sir Reagan were harmless, that Lords Samuel and Phineas had no real influence. But he could feel something coming. Something like a cloud on the horizon. Merlin looked at Arthur, who was sparring with one of the younger knights-in-training. He had a look of concentration on his face, with only a hint of darkness in his blue eyes. Still, Merlin knew Arthur could feel it, too. A disaster was coming.

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**Author's Note: I have a dream that I will come home after a long day of school and work and my reviews will have sky-rocketed in my absence. Please review and help me achieve my dream! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Please review! I would really appreciate it.**

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Merlin was more than a little nervous for the banquet that evening. Gaius attempted to console him.

"Everything will be alright, Merlin. Arthur isn't going to let anyone do anything to you."

"Oh, please," Merlin scoffed. "It's not _me_ I'm worried about."

"Of course not," Gaius muttered, rolling his eyes. "When are you ever?"

"If Arthur does this," Merlin said, ignoring Gaius, "If he continues to publicly support me – it's not like I'm not grateful for this. I am. I'm – happy, that Arthur accepts who I am. It's just…"

"I understand, Merlin. It is a difficult situation, no matter how it's handled."

Merlin walked towards the door, and then turned back to the old physician. "I have a bad feeling about tonight, Gaius."

Gaius looked properly concerned. "If anything goes wrong, you can always come to me."

Merlin looked at his mentor, old and wrinkled, bent over his work station with a shuffling gait and unsteady hands. Merlin smiled, turning to leave the room. He _was_ slightly comforted.

* * *

Arthur was exuding confidence when Merlin arrived at the chambers. "Ready?" he aid to Merlin, smiling widely.

Unfortunately for Arthur, Merlin knew him better than anyone.

"Stop with the cheery demeanor, you're just as nervous about this as I am."

Arthur stared at Merlin for a moment and then let his shoulders slump slightly. "I have to believe my people will support me. Besides, it's a public banquet. I doubt anyone is going to make a scene."

Merlin sighed deeply, glancing at his own reflection in Arthur's mirror. Earlier in the day, Corwin had dropped off cloths for Merlin to wear to the banquet. It wasn't anything too extravagant, but he was certainly wearing cloths befitting the nobility, rather than the common class. "I look ridiculous," he said, spinning to stare at more of the cloths in the mirror.

Arthur grinned. "Remember that official servant garb I made you wear once?"

Merlin chuckled. "Yeah. I don't have exactly fond memories of that day, believe it or not."

"Hm?" Arthur said, turning and trying to fix his hair in the mirror.

"Somebody tried to poison you, remember?"

Arthur raised his eyebrows, and then grimaced at the memory. He turned to face Merlin. "_That's_ what upsets you about that day? That I was the target? _You_ are the one who almost died."

"Well, it all worked out anyway, didn't it?"

Arthur muttered something under his breath that sounded like "self-sacrificing idiot."

"Alright," Merlin said, changing topics. "We definitely shouldn't arrive at the banquet together. I'll go on ahead, shall I?"

"That's probably a good idea," Arthur said as Merlin made his way to the door. "Merlin."

The young sorcerer turned to look at his king.

"Good luck and… be careful."

"You too," Merlin said with a nod.

* * *

Merlin approached the hall for the banquet with great trepidation. Wryly, Merlin thought to himself that he had never felt so entirely nervous to go sit down to a meal before. The banquet hall looked decadent. Several of the nobles were already in the hall, seated. Trying not to show his nerves, Merlin quietly took his own place near the edge of the table.

An old man called Lord Orwick was seated in the chair beside him. He smiled at Merlin. "Hello, young man."

"Hello, sir," Merlin said, still feeling anxious. The room was still engaged in murmuring conversation, but he could feel several pairs of eyes on him.

"You know," Lord Orwick said conversationally. "I had an Aunt, once. Used to sit all us kids down and make our toys fly through the air with her mind alone." Orwick smiled at the memory, and then turned to stare directly at Merlin.

"That woman saved my sister from a terrible illness. She was a very good person."

Merlin did not know what to say for a moment.

"Young man," Orwick said very seriously. "You need to know that you have friends among the nobility here."

"Here, here!" another Lord across the table said, raising his goblet.

"Thank you, Merlin said sincerely. "It is good to know I have some support."

At this moment, Gwen made her grand entrance to the room, and all at the table stood to receive her. The young queen looked embarrassed but gracious, as always, at the attention. She took her place but all remained standing as King Arthur entered, going to stand beside his queen at the center of the table.

"Thank you all for attending tonight," Arthur began his speech, voice serious and imperious. "Tonight is a night of peace. I know that times have been difficult for all of us – as you all know well, Merlin and I suffered a terrible illness under Morgana's curse. We survived only due to the valiant efforts of Camelot's knights. And now – I wanted to thank all of you. It is never easy to accept change, and I am aware that the change I have placed before you is a big one indeed."

Arthur paused for a moment. Several of the lords turned to glance not-so-surreptitiously at Merlin, who kept his gaze firmly on Arthur.

"I want to thank all of you for keeping an open mind, and trusting that this change I bring to Camelot is for the betterment of all. Thank you, and please enjoy the feast."

Everyone clapped as Arthur took his seat, and the nobility followed suit. Lord Orwick and many of the others clapped enthusiastically, while Lords Samuel and Phineas, sitting side by side near Arthur, tapped their hands together with the minimum of obligation.

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**Author's Note: Thank you!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: Please let me know what you think! Things will obviously be picking up from here...**

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The group at the banquet broke out into conversation. Several servants came forward to fill the platters and goblets, and Merlin had a moment of odd identity crisis – Not so long ago he had been standing and serving, rather than sitting and receiving.

Merlin watched Arthur talk with Lord Samuel, their conversation seemingly civil if not particularly friendly. Gwen chatted with Lord Mateo and his wife Lady Magera, while Merlin talked with Orwick and a few of the other men.

Everything was actually going quite smoothly – Arthur kept looking over at Merlin's corner of the table to assure himself that all was well, and the young warlock caught him at it, smiling reassuringly at the king while Arthur looked embarrassed at being caught checking on his friend.

In fact, nearly an hour had passed of pleasant conversation, good food, and good drink, before disaster struck.

People often made speeches or toasts at these banquets, and a man sitting opposite the long table of Merlin stood to make such a speech. His name was Lord Harvey, and he had been very quiet through most of the meal.

As he stood, Merlin saw the faintest twinkle of gold in his eyes. _Magic_. Merlin's instinct was to jump out of his chair and get to Arthur. His heart was pounding abnormally fast but he forced himself to keep seated, staring with trepidation at Lord Harvey. Maybe it was only a trick of the candlelight…

"Your majesty, my Queen, my dear lords and friends," Lord Harvey said, voice booming out over the room. The banquet fell to a respectful silence. Arthur turned his attention to Harvey, but Merlin kept his eyes on Arthur, flicking between his king and the perceived threat, ready to jump up at a moment's notice.

"Thank you, your majesty, for this wonderful meal, and the good company. I speak today for the benefit of one individual in particular, to warn him of the truth." Lord Harvey turned his eyes from Arthur and stared directly at Merlin. The room shuffled nervously at once, and Arthur followed Harvey's gaze, landing on Merlin, surprised.

Merlin shrugged briefly at Arthur. _I have no idea_.

"You, sorcerer," Lord Harvey said imperiously. "Are foolish to be here. You are wrong to trust King Arthur."

Merlin's throat felt very dry. The people in the room were looking between Merlin and Harvey with fear and interest.

"Listen, Lord Harvey," Arthur said, beginning to stand. "Maybe we should – "

"Silence," Harvey snarled, raising a hand and waving it at Arthur. The king sat down heavily, glued to his chair.

"Hey!" Merlin said. "Watch it!" He stood, fuming.

"You really think these men will support you? You really think they won't turn their backs on you the moment things become complicated?"

Merlin narrowed his gaze, turning for a moment towards Arthur, who was still struggling in vain to stand.

"Who _are_ you?" Merlin growled, feeling his powers come to the surface in preparation.

"You've noticed, then?"

"What did you do to Lord Harvey?" Merlin asked.

"What?" Arthur broke in, sounding frightened.

"Lord Henry is dead, but kind enough to lend me his physical form so I could gain an audience with you, my liege."

Startled, the whole room held its breath as "Lord Harvey" bowed, not to Arthur, but to Merlin.

"What?" Merlin echoed Arthur's interjection.

"You do not belong in the company of these hypocritical nobles, Emrys," Harvey said, hos voice taking on a reverent tone.

"Who. Are. You," Merlin repeated, shaking. The name "Emrys" was ringing in his ears. That piece of information was certainly not common knowledge.

"An admirer, Emrys. That is all you need to know. If you stay here, you will be betrayed by your precious king."

"No, I won't!"

"No, he won't!"

Arthur and Merlin spoke as one, and then turned to look at one another. Merlin's eyes flashed gold for a second, and Arthur found himself able to stand once more.

"I understand your discomfort, and your hesitance to trust me," the sorcerer said, looking at Merlin with sincerity.

"Well, you can't blame me for _that_. I don't even know your name."

"Be that as it may, I am on your side, Emrys."

Merlin scoffed, but Harvey, or whoever he was, would not allow him to speak.

"I hope one day you will forgive me for this, Emrys, but I cannot allow you to remain in Camelot, where you are in danger."

Everyone in the room was still seated except for Harvey and Merlin, standing on either end of the long table, and Arthur, right in between.

"I'm not leaving Camelot," Merlin said, struggling to keep his voice calm.

Harvey shook his head slowly, a hint of sadness in his gaze. "Your trust in King Arthur is so misguided. One day you will understand that."

"I'm not _leaving Camelot_," Merlin seethed.

"You have no choice," Harvey said, and without warning, he raised his arms to Merlin, speaking a string of words in the ancient language. A blast of energy came out of Harvey's raised hands, headed straight for Merlin.

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**Author's Note: Dun, dun, dun...  
**


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: Please let me know what you think! Big stuff is coming up!**

* * *

Merlin felt Harvey's spell coming at him, and had seconds to react. He raised his hands, blocking the spell without a word. Harvey snarled in anger at the resistance.

"I'm more powerful than you are," Merlin said, voice strong. "You have no influence over me."

Harvey's fury turned to a look of great concentration. Everyone in the room was frozen in fear, as Harvey narrowed his eyes.

"Oh, don't I?" He turned, lightning fast, and spoke another spell, aiming it directly at Arthur.

Merlin pushed his hands out, and felt Harvey's spell hit against the shield. Whatever Harvey was doing, the spell was continuous, pulsing against Merlin's barrier incessantly. The power of the spell was moderate at best, Merlin was able to hold it off easily, protecting not only Arthur but also Gwen and the rest of the nobles. In all, Harvey certainly was not strong enough to take on Merlin.

Which lead everyone in the room to wonder… why was this mysterious sorcerer still smiling?

"Do you know what my spell will do to your precious Arthur and the rest of these nobles?"

"Nothing. I'm not letting you." Merlin's voice was tense – not with the effort of the shield, but with anger. The urge to lash out was overpowering – to hurt this man who dared to come here and threaten the people he loved.

"But if you were to lower your shield," Harvey said, his grin still in place.

Merlin grimaced. "They would burn." From the corner of his eye, he saw Lord Samuel take a nervous step back, but there was nowhere to go. He stared at Merlin with distrust plastered on his face. Merlin still had his hands up, keeping the shield in place like a wall separating Harvey and himself from the rest of the room. He wanted to roll his eyes at Samuel. He was saving that pompous man's life, and he couldn't even muster up a moment of gratitude.

"They would burn," Harvey echoed, the smile growing wider. "And you would never let that happen."

"Stop this," Arthur said suddenly, and his voice sounded terrified. Merlin looked at him, startled by the look of panic in his eyes.

"I'm not letting him through, Arthur," He said, trying to reassure him.

"_No_, you idiot! Don't you see what he's doing?" Arthur's voice was choked with fear.

"Emrys," Harvey began, solemn. "I do apologize for the way I must do this. But you must get out of Camelot while you still can, and this is the only way."

Merlin and Arthur made eye-contact, and perfect understanding passed between them. Merlin would keep the shield up, no matter what. Which left him undefended.

Harvey kept one hand directing his spell in Arthur's direction, bouncing feebly against Merlin's shield. Harvey's other hand turned to Merlin.

"Merlin," Arthur said, his voice pleading. "Don't."

"No choice," Merlin said, closing his eyes and Harvey began to speak. The spell was long, complex, and strong, and was clearly being channeled through someone or something much more powerful. Merlin didn't have time to wonder at this before the spell hit him.

Something icy spread through him and he lost his footing. His knees hit the ground, and he heard several voices call out his name. Darkness took him.

* * *

The second Merlin hit the ground, Harvey brought his hands together and whispered more ancient words. By the time Arthur and the other lords had rushed forward, the sorcerer had vanished.

The king changed tracks as soon as it was obvious that Harvey was gone, turning and rushing to Merlin's side.

Lord Samuel spoke, edging forward. "Be careful, my Lord! You heard what that sorcerer said! He was on Merlin's side!"

"Lord Samuel!" Orwick said, scandalized.

"Shut up," Arthur snarled in Samuel's general direction, not caring about propriety. He knelt by Merlin, placing a nervous hand against his friend's neck as Gaius had once taught him. He found the fluttering pulse immediately, and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Gwen! Help me get him to Gaius." A couple of servants from the perimeter of the room rushed forward to assist, as well, including Corwin.

"But – my lord!" Samuel said again. Arthur ignored him, maneuvering Merlin into an upright position. The young sorcerer peeled his eyes open weakly.

"Merlin?" Gwen said anxiously. Merlin groaned lightly, and the entire awkward group shuffled forward, towards the door out of the hall. They left the hall with a grumbling Lord Samuel in the background.

"That ungrateful – utterly _terrible_ Samuel," Arthur seethed, supporting Merlin heavily.

"'S okay, Arthur…" Merlin murmured.

"What did that man do to you?" Gwen asked anxiously.

Merlin's eyes rolled back in his head for a moment, and he slumped even more heavily into Arthur's side.

"Merlin!" the king said, shaking him by the shoulders until his eyes opened again.

"'M alright…"

"Clearly, you're not," Arthur said grimly, moving the group forward. It took them several minutes to reach Gaius's chambers. The physician swung the door open, to the sight of his young charge leaning against Arthur, barely conscious.

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**Author's Note: What do you think the sorcerer did to Merlin?**


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: Many of you thought that "Harvey" did something to take away Merlin's magic. It was a good thought, but I went in a different direction. Let me know what you think! Any favorite quotes form the chapter?  
**

* * *

Gaius wasted no time helping lower Merlin into a chair.

"Merlin?" Gaius said anxiously, keeping eye-contact with the young man. "What happened?"

"I need – " Merlin broke off, shuddering in pain, and Arthur tightened his hand convulsively on Merlin's shoulder, his face clouded with fear.

"There was a sorcerer. He – he did something. I don't know…" Arthur glanced between Merlin and Gaius, feeling utterly helpless as he tried to explain.

Merlin fought to keep himself conscious. "Banishment spell," he gasped to Gaius. The physician's eyes widened.

"Oh, Merlin." Gaius's voice was dead serious.

"What? What does that mean?" Arthur asked. Gwen was brushing Merlin's hair away from his forehead, feeling terribly reminded of an incident from the all-too-recent past. Merlin looked pale and sickly, much as he had not all that long ago when he had been at death's door, all because of Morgana.

"I can only delay – " Gaius said.

"Well then _do_ it!" Merlin suddenly snapped. "I need time."

Gaius snapped to attention and rushed to his work table, rummaging around for different ingredients.

"What's happening to you?" Arthur demanded. His hand was still gripped tight on Merlin's arm.

Merlin struggled to sit upright. Before he could respond, the door burst open. A group of knights came in, surrounding Merlin, Arthur, and Gwen in a rush.

"Corwin told us what happened!" Gwaine gasped.

"He was in the room, he saw everything," Leon said.

"Is he alright?" Percival asked Arthur, just as Elyan spoke to Merlin –

"Are you alright?"

The group shuffled around, the faces swarming before Merlin's eyes. All of it was chaos, there was too much noise, and movement, and…

"Everyone, step back!" Gaius's voice was powerful enough to enlist immediate action. The round-table knights backed off, as did Gwen.

Arthur, a stubborn set to his eyes, tightened both hands on Merlin's arm. Gaius smiled lightly.

"We need to have him drink this," Gaius said to Arthur. The king nodded, shuffling forward slightly on his knees and putting a hand on the side of Merlin's head to support it.

Drearily, Merlin allowed Gaius to tilt a vial of blue liquid into his mouth. With some measure of difficulty, he swallowed.

The entire room held its breath. Merlin grimaced at the taste of the potion, and then froze. All at once, he slumped forward, unconscious. Arthur caught him before he could hit the floor.

Gwaine and Percival rushed forward to help Arthur, as Gaius instructed them to move Merlin into his room, on the cot.

"What happened?" Gwen asked as the men lowered Merlin to the bed.

Gaius spoke to the room at large, which was crowded with the knights, king, queen, and physician of Camelot, along with the very pale warlock. "It was to be expected," Gaius said. "He'll be in a deep sleep for a few hours, and then when he wakes up he will be healthy."

"Just like that?" Arthur asked, startled. He was standing by the bed with his arms folded, trying to mask his extreme concern.

"Temporarily," Gaius sighed. "After a few days, he will fall under the effects of the curse again, and there will be nothing left for me to do."

"Couldn't you just keep feeding the potion to him?" Leon asked.

"Unfortunately, it will work only once. The banishment spell will learn to combat the effects of the potion, and it will become useless."

The room was silent for a moment, and then Gwaine spoke, voicing the question that everyone was afraid to ask. "What's going to happen to him?"

"It was a banishment spell," Gaius said wearily. "Unless he leaves Camelot… he will die."

Arthur pulled the only chair in the tiny room forward and sat down in it heavily. "Leave Camelot?" he echoed Gaius weakly, rubbing a hand through his hair.

"I'm afraid so."

"For how long?" Gwaine demanded. The knight shared a look with Arthur. They were in perfect agreement for once – the thought of a Camelot without Merlin was a dark thought, indeed.

Gaius looked hesitant. "I believe… there may be a way to counter-act the curse." The room brightened a bit, but before anyone could celebrate, Gaius suddenly changed topics, his face serious. "What happened, exactly? Who was this sorcerer?"

Arthur told Gaius the story, with Gwen adding in a comment here or there. It was a difficult story to tell. For one thing, Arthur couldn't give Gaius much of a satisfactory account, given that the sorcerer had hidden his true identity, and that Arthur had no real knowledge of magic.

"He – the sorcerer – he was going to kill me, and Merlin did something, like a protective cover over all of us."

"A shield."

"Yes, I suppose. And then he – the sorcerer…" The guilt was over-powering. If Merlin hadn't been protecting him, then this wouldn't have happened.

Gaius nodded, reading Arthur's thoughts on his face. "If the Banishment Spell can be reversed, it would be powerful magic, indeed. Far beyond my ability. When Merlin wakes, he will know if it can be done."

* * *

**Author's Note: Thanks for all of you who have read and reviewed!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: I want to see how quickly this story can break the number of reviews that "Connected" got. Go readers! You can do it! :) Anyways. Tell me whatcha think of this one.**

* * *

Elyan had stepped forward during Arthur's retelling to stand beside his sister. He spoke now, trying to make sense of the impossibility of recent events. "And if Merlin can do this… then he won't need to leave Camelot?"

Gaius grimaced at the expression of hope of Elyan's face. "Even if Merlin _can_ do this, it wouldn't be an immediate response. It might take several days, weeks, months…"

"And during that time he'd have to leave Camelot," Arthur said slowly. The thought was burning through his brain. A Camelot without Merlin by his side. Even as a temporary solution, it seemed utterly wrong.

Gaius nodded slowly. "I think perhaps we should let Merlin get his rest," he said pointedly. The room turned to look at Merlin, who was out cold. It was clear that Merlin wasn't at all bothered by the congregation of people in the room, but the knights left anyway, standing one by one and leaving Merlin's room.

Gwen kissed Arthur softly and looked with concern a Merlin one last time before departing. Arthur stayed sitting in the chair, showing no sign of moving.

"We'll figure this out, Arthur." Gaius's voice was kind, with a fatherly tone that washed over the young king like a comforting blanket.

"I think I'll stay, if that's alright," Arthur said. Gaius smiled, placing a hand on Arthur's shoulder.

"So I assumed."

Gaius walked out the door to Merlin's room and closed it gently behind him. Arthur sighed, leaning forward and resting his arms on his knees. He didn't know why exactly he wanted to stay, but seeing Merlin breathing was doing a lot to calm him. He was alive. Merlin was alive, and he was going to stay that way. The rest could wait.

* * *

Merlin opened his eyes close to three hours later. Arthur was still sitting in the same spot, dozing lightly with a look of worry on his face.

"Arthur?"

The king jerked awake quickly, taking a moment to orient himself. "You're awake," Arthur said, voice croaking with disuse.

"Yeah." Merlin sat up from the bed and then jumped to his feet, stretching with a yawn. "Gaius?" he called out.

The physician heard Merlin's voice and rushed into the room, coming forward and holding Merlin's face between his hands.

"How do you feel?"

"Great. You did a good job." Merlin paused for a second, and then moved straight to a point: "How long?"

Gaius looked anxious. "No more than three days." Merlin nodded, his face serious.

"I need to stop this. I can't leave Camelot."

Gaius didn't say anything. He left the room for a moment, talking to Merlin and Arthur over his shoulder. "I've done a bit of research that you should see." The minute he had cleared the doorway, Arthur spoke.

"You shouldn't have – "

"Don't bother, Arthur. I'm always going to save you."

"You're an idiot," Arthur said, his voice fond but also strained. "He could have killed you."

"But… he didn't…" Merlin said. He sounded curious, and Arthur raised his eyebrows at the expression on his friend's face.

"What is it?"

"Well… why didn't he? Why does he want me out of Camelot so bad?"

Before Arthur could answer, Gaius came sweeping back into the room. "I've found a spell that's supposed to reverse the effects of a banishment spell. It will take very powerful magic, though."

"Well, it's a good thing that I'm a very powerful sorcerer, then, isn't it?" Merlin said, grabbing the book that Gaius was holding out of his hands. Merlin's eyes scanned the page for a few seconds, while Arthur looked curiously over his shoulder.

"You can read that?" the king asked.

"It's in the old tongue," Merlin said absentmindedly, his eyes still flitting from word to word. He looked up when he had finished reading, his face looking stricken. "Gaius, this says the spell will take months to take effect."

Arthur's eyes widened, while Gaius nodded sadly. "I'm afraid it seems to be the only way, Merlin."

"Well then, forget it! I'm not leaving Arthur – _Camelot_, I mean – undefended for months!"

Arthur smirked at the slip up, and then his face went serious. "Merlin, the only other option here is you dying. You've got to go."

Merlin looked helplessly between Gaius and Arthur. "This doesn't make any sense. Why would this man want me out of Camelot so badly?"

"Maybe so he could strike against Camelot without you here to defend it?" Arthur said, shrugging. Merlin sighed, sitting down heavily on the bed with the spell book still in his hands.

"That doesn't make sense. If he wanted me out of the way, he could have killed me back there. I would have had no choice but to let him."

Arthur and Gaius shared an exasperated look. When would Merlin stop throwing his life around like it meant nothing?

"You would have had a choice, prat," Arthur said sternly.

"Not one I could live with."

"Well that's good then, because you wouldn't have been _alive _either way!"

"You are so irritating, did you know that?"

"_Me_, Merlin? Really? You're the one who keeps risking your life – "

"I'm not entirely keen on the idea of dying for you, Arthur, but – "

"Oh _really_. Because you could have fooled me!"

"Boys!" Gaius broke in harshly.

Arthur and Merlin turned to look at Gaius in unison, chagrined. "Sorry," they said together.

"Back to the point, then?" Gaius said, somewhat amused at the fierce looks of anger on both young men's faces. "If this mysterious sorcerer wanted Camelot, he could have killed Merlin and been done with it. But he didn't. Why is that?"

The room was silent for a moment. "He knew the name Emrys," Merlin said quietly. It had been bothering him, more than everything else. "He said he was on my side."

"Whatever that means," Arthur began slowly, "I don't like the sound of it."

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you for reading!  
**


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note: Thanks to all my reviewers! This is a really long author's note, sorry about that. This next paragraph is to HEIRESS GREY so feel free to skip it but then please do read the last paragraph.**

**To Heiress Grey: I wanted to PM you but you have it disabled. Thanks for your review! I know my work is riddled with errors… I write these chapters in one go and publish them without reading them over, given that my crazy life really shouldn't allow for writing fanfiction so I don't bother to edit. If in the future you see any particularly glaring errors I'd be grateful if you could point them out! If I ever go back to clean this up I will fix them. In regards to this going a lot slower than Connected – I made a decision to add a bunch of original characters (the lords and knights, mainly), so unfortunately I think that is slowing me down from getting to the main stuff. Also, since I'm doing longer chapters I'm adding in more detail rather than just driving it completely by the plot. I hope you still enjoy!**

**Okay, to all my readers: I just sat down to outline how this story is going to play out, and I realized that it is **_**long**_**. I mean, **_**really**_** long. So – my question for all of you. Would you rather have a really long "Destiny," or do you want me to wrap it up somewhere and make a third installment to the series? As you may have noticed, we have two different strings of plot going on here – you've got the whole Banishment Spell thing, but also you have Lord Samuel and his cronies. Of the latter, I know exactly what he's doing in the story but his plot points don't really pick up until the end. I could very well expand on that and put it into a third installment if that's something you guys would rather see. Then, "Destiny" would focus more on the Banishment Spell story-arc, and Samuel's character would have a minor sub-plot to be picked up on in the third installment. Alternately, it could all be in one big story. What do you guys think?**

**Whew. Okay, I'll let you read now. Sorry.**

* * *

Merlin was examining the spell anxiously, looking it over and muttering aloud. "This is… really complicated, Gaius. I need to tie the spell to another magical being, and use our combined forces to break the banishment."

Arthur was pacing. The three men had moved out of Merlin's room to Gaius's main chambers for more space. "What did that man _want_?" he repeated for at least the fifth time. "Why would he want you to leave Camelot?"

Merlin looked up from the spell book to look straight at Arthur. In truth, he had discerned "Harvey's" true intent almost immediately, but he wasn't sure if he was right, and he was hesitant to tell Arthur his theories. "Well…"

"What? Merlin? What are you not telling me?" Arthur demanded.

"I think… he wants me away from you so he can convince me to join him."

Arthur scoffed. "Like _that_ would ever happen." Merlin smiled at Arthur, extremely grateful for his friend's trust.

"He knew my identity as Emrys, which makes him connected in some way to the druids."

"The druids?" Gaius said dubiously. "This seems out of character for them."

"Yes, it does," Merlin said. "But we know it's possible to stray from the path. Mordred is a good example of that."

Arthur nodded sadly, and Merlin was grateful for the thousandth time that Arthur knew the full truth, that he didn't need to offer any explanations, lies, or excuses to his best friend.

"So they want you on their side," Gaius said. "To help them… what?"

Merlin shrugged. "Gain power? Command the world? With enough power, they would have a lot at their fingertips."

"Well, he's an idiot, then," Arthur said firmly. "You'll do the spell to counter-act Harvey's and then you'll… leave… Camelot, just until it works. And then you come back. He's already failed." Arthur's voice was extremely confidant on the surface, but he looked at Merlin, hoping for confirmation.

Merlin nodded at Arthur. "They obviously won't be able to get me to turn against you, but I'm certain they'll try whatever they can think of to get me to change my mind." Merlin twisted his mouth around wryly. Gaius pursed his lips and shook his head anxiously. It took Arthur a minute to catch on to the point, and then he took a few urgent steps forward.

"You think they'll torture you."

"I don't know how many of them there are, Arthur, but it would have to be a pretty big group for them to get to me."

"But – "

"I can take care of myself, Arthur."

"But…"

"I don't like it any more than you do."

Arthur dragged a hand harshly through his hair. "So… how does this work? How do you counter-act the Banishment Spell?"

Merlin looked at Gaius and then at Arthur, for a long moment. "Arthur, I think it's time you met a certain friend of mine."

Arthur raised his eyebrows, and Merlin lowered his. "Time to talk with a dragon."

* * *

The entire round-table group had congregated in Arthur's chambers to discuss the plan. It was a point of pride for Arthur that he hadn't let any of the noble advisers in to this special group. They met wherever they felt like it, and they spoke as equals. He knew it drove Lord Samuel crazy, which was only a fringe benefit, of course.

"Here's what's to happen," Merlin began, speaking to the group at large. "I can tie a spell to Kilgharrah that will allow me to leave Camelot and return again in two months, according to my calculations."

The sound of "two months" rang in the room, and several people looked ready to interrupt, so Arthur stepped in.

"I know. But unfortunately it's the only plan we've got." He turned to look at Merlin, feeling a uneasy tightening in his chest. Two months.

"In that time," Merlin continued, "I'm going to try and discover what this sorcerer is up to. I believe he wants to… convert me, somehow, to his cause for power. He may belong to some sort of a group, looking to recruit a powerful sorcerer to their side. The point is, I'll make myself scarce. I won't let him get to me, obviously, and after two months I'll be back in Camelot, and this sorcerer will realize that there's no way to turn me against Arthur."

Leon shared the same look of concern as everyone else in the room. He cleared his throat and spoke, trying to remain stoic. "Is there any possibility that this is the work of Morgana?"

Merlin shook his head. "It seems most unlikely. This man said he was… an admirer of mine. And he didn't kill me when he had the chance. Thus far, I don't believe Morgana even knows that I _am_ Emrys. I'd be surprised if she had anything to do with this."

"Two months," Gwen said suddenly, her voice quiet but piercing. "That's a long time."

"I know," Merlin said, voice coming out low and uneasy. "That's the other thing we need to discuss today. I can't be here to protect Arthur."

Just a few short months before, this might have prompted an amused response from the group. Merlin had always been known as a loyal and true friend to Camelot, but the idea of the young man _protecting_, rather than _needing_ protection had been laughable. Now, no one was laughing.

"Merlin, obviously these men aren't after me or Camelot, or the sorcerer could have just killed me when he was here."

"I know," Merlin responded to Arthur. "But what if Morgana gets wind of the fact that you're unprotected? Or even if she doesn't, she could strike while I'm not here."

The room let that sink in for a moment. Merlin felt sick. The idea of leaving Camelot… leaving _Arthur_ completely vulnerable for two months… If anything happened to any of the people he cared about, he'd never forgive himself.

* * *

**Author's Note: Please read the author's note above and let me know what you think of the direction this story is going.  
**


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Note: I got pretty divided opinions as to whether or not to make this a really long story or divide it so that the series has three. I've decided I'll keep writing and if I reach what I feel is a natural stopping point then I'll start a new story. We shall see how it goes! Also keep the reviews up because honestly one of the most exciting things ever for an author is coming home after a long day and seeing new reviews! Thanks.**

* * *

They had decided that Merlin and Arthur would go alone the next night to speak with Kilgharrah about the spell. That left Arthur several more hours with which to obsess over the recent events. The group had dispersed after discussing in great detail how best to protect Arthur while Merlin was away.

The king had been more than a little annoyed with all the talk of sacrifice and "protect him at all costs" that had bounced among the group, insisting again and again that he was perfectly capable of watching over himself.

With all of these thoughts of dragons and curses and Merlin leaving Camelot, he was in absolutely _no_ mood to deal with the most irritating noble in all the land. Unfortunately, Samuel wasn't giving him much choice.

"Your majesty," Lord Samuel said after Arthur granted him access to the throne room. Behind him stood Lord Phineas, and the Knights Timothy and Reagan. "We have come to speak with you concerning the boy, Merlin."

Arthur had to bite his tongue to stop himself from a quick retort. He had been noticing the use of the word "boy" to describe Merlin more and more lately, which was hardly befitting either his age (less than two years younger than Arthur himself), or his new status as adviser.

"Yes, what is it?"

"We understand you have a certain… fondness for him, sire," Lord Phineas said. His voice was nasally and sounded as if he were in the middle of smelling something truly repulsive. "But we believe your bias towards him may be clouding your judgment."

"The boy is a sorcerer, after all," Samuel said. "Have you considered that he may be manipulating your thoughts using magic?"

Arthur fought to keep his voice level. "I know that this is what all of you think. But I would urge you to look at the facts – if Merlin truly wished ill will on Camelot, why would he still be waiting to act? For that matter, why would he have saved all of our lives back there? He could have let that other sorcerer kill us, but he didn't. In fact, he risked his life to protect me and the rest of us. This is just the latest in a long string of selfless deeds."

The four men were standing a respectful distance from the king. They turned to look at one another, as if their worst fears were being confirmed.

"My liege," Samuel said, keeping his voice supercilious and falsely respectful. "We simply urge you to take great caution. We have no way of knowing where this sorcerer's true allegiance lies."

"It lies with me. Always has, and always will," Arthur said shortly. "Now, if you will excuse me, I have very important matters of the state to attend to."

The two Lords and two Knights shared another glance with one another before bowing in unison and leaving the room. As the door swung shut behind him, another thought hit Arthur.

Merlin had no choice but to leave Camelot in a couple of days, once Gaius's potion wore off and the effects of the banishment spell began to kill him. But how would it look to Samuel and the others when Merlin, who professed to be a friend of Camelot, fled from it?

It was too much to hope that these stubborn men would believe the truth. To them, it would appear as if Merlin was running away, proving his evil nature in the process.

* * *

"You have _got_ to stop pacing, Merlin, you're giving me a headache."

"_Sorry_. It's just that it's not every day I introduce the king of Camelot to the dragon he once tried to kill."

"Hey, your friend Kilgharrah tried to kill me, too, so let's not go pointing fingers."

Merlin made a sound low in his throat. "You behave."

"You may be allowed to tell the dragon what to do, but you're certainly not the boss of _me_, Merlin."

Merlin sighed. The two of them were in the clearing near the castle where Merlin often went to speak to the dragon. They were standing several feet apart and both kept unconsciously glancing skyward. Merlin was listening intently for the tell-tale beat of Kilgharrah's wings. He had called for the dragon moments earlier, in the ancient tongue, smirking slightly when he saw the look of awe on Arthur's face. "He'll be here any minute. Let's just… calm ourselves."

"Take your own advice," Arthur muttered. Merlin glared at him, but took a deep breath, trying to maintain his measure of self-assuredness. This was going to go fine. There was no reason that a meeting between Arthur and Kilgharrah had to end badly… right?

"I talked with Lord Samuel today," Arthur said offhandedly.

"Oh yeah?"

"He thinks you're bewitching me."

"I'm getting more than a little tired of that."

"Me too."

"So… what did you say to him?" Merlin asked, nervous and hiding it badly.

"Told him to go to hell."

"Arthur!"

"Oh, relax. I was nice. I just asked them to look at what was right in front of them, and see what you've done for Camelot."

"I bet that went over nicely," Merlin said, sarcasm lacing his tone.

Arthur chuckled darkly. "Yes, well, it did occur to me that your vanishing from sight in a few days isn't really going to help your image with the people."

Merlin was silent for a moment. "Arthur…"

"Just don't, Merlin. It's two months, right? Not important."

"If anything happens to – "

Arthur had just turned to face Merlin head-on and was about to cut him off, when a sound from the skies made them both fall silent immediately.

The Great Dragon had arrived.

* * *

**Author's Note: Time for Arthur and Kilgharrah to meet!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note: Keep da reviews comin' mah readers. :)**

* * *

Arthur took a few steps closer to Merlin, feeling anxious. His instinct was to believe that dragons were dangerous and evil. But then, he had always believed that magic was evil as well, and he had been wrong about that.

Kilgharrah alighted on the ground with surprisingly little noise for such a huge creature.

"Hello, young warlock," he said. Arthur took a step back. He knew that the dragon could talk, but hearing it was something different all together. "And hello, young king of Camelot!" Kilgharrah said, looking briefly at Arthur and then back to Merlin. "Well, then. Clearly things have changed."

"Arthur knows the truth," Merlin said. "And he supports it."

Kilgharrah offered a scaly smile. "This is wonderful news." He turned to Arthur, who felt rather disconcerted to have those enormous eyes focused on him. "You have made poor decisions in the past, young man. But know that trusting Merlin is a good one."

"I do know that," Arthur said, trying to keep his voice strong so as to hide his fear.

"Why have you called for me, Merlin?" Kilgharrah asked. Merlin looked up firmly into the dragon's eyes.

"I need your help."

Merlin explained the situation while Arthur stood aside, watching the exchange with great interest. Arthur remembered the beast as a dangerous, destructive monster, but today he seemed so… civilized.

"How would a sorcerer be able to banish you? Who could be powerful enough?" Kilgharrah asked, surprised.

"Harvey – or, whoever he is – was clearly channeling his magic through something more powerful." Merlin paused. "Which is why I need your help to combat it."

Kilgharrah shifted slightly where he stood, and the earth rumbled. "Even by linking your magic to me, this will be no easy task. It should take months to combat a Banishment Spell that is already in place."

"I know," Merlin said gravely. "But I can't think of anything else. This is the only way I can survive, and come back to Camelot."

The dragon paused to think for a moment, and then his scaly eyes blinked a few times, very slowly. "Very well. Tell your king to step back."

"Arthur," Merlin said, turning to look at his friend.

"I want to stay."

"The magic is too powerful for you," Kilgharrah said sternly. "This is not open for discussion."

Arthur looked nervously at the Great Dragon, and then looked at Merlin, seemingly prepared to argue.

"Go back to the castle. I'll come as soon as we've finished," Merlin said.

Arthur hesitated, but finally nodded and began his trek back to the castle, glancing over his shoulder as he went.

* * *

Merlin stopped by Arthur's room as soon as Kilgharrah had left. He knocked, and Arthur's voice immediately granted him entrance.

Guinevere was in the room as well. The king and queen were sitting together on the edge of the bed, their hands tightly woven together.

"I can come back later," Merlin said, grinning. Gwen looked embarrassed and Arthur rolled his eyes.

"Don't be ridiculous. How did it go? Did it work?"

Merlin nodded. "Yes. According to Kilgharrah, I was right about the timeline. Once Gaius's potion wears off and I have to leave, the magic connecting me with Kilgharrah will start to take effect. Then, it should be about two months before Harvey's banishment spell is broken."

"How much longer until Gaius's potion wears off?" Gwen asked nervously. Merlin walked forward into the room and sat down heavily in a chair.

"Two days, at the most." Merlin made eye contact with Arthur. The king's eyebrows were pulled together. "Which brings me to something else I wanted to talk with you about, Arthur."

"What now?" Arthur asked, somewhat nervously.

"I'm going to lose my mind if I can't know what's going on here for two full months," Merlin began bluntly. "If something happens and I can't be here… well then I'm damn sure going to need some sort of assurance that you haven't gone and gotten yourself killed in my absence."

Arthur glared, but Merlin cut him off before he could respond. "I'm going to place a charm on two stones. I take one, you take the other. It's fairly rudimentary magic but we can send each other signals if something goes wrong."

Gwen smiled widely "That certainly makes me feel better," she said.

"How does it work?" Arthur asked.

"Basically, I charm the two rocks, and we keep them near us at all times. I'll teach you how to activate it and send me a signal once I've found the rocks."

"I'd have to… what, use magic?" Arthur said, a hint of a smile forming on his face. "That's ridiculous."

Merlin sighed deeply. "People have this silly notion about magic. What you all don't seem to understand is that it's just… part of nature. It's a part of the earth and the sea and the wind. It's a part of everyone."

"You mean… I can do magic," Gwen said, disbelieving.

"Well, you'd have to study at it for a long time, and even then you probably wouldn't be able to do anything beyond the basics, but yes."

"But then how did you get to be so powerful?" Arthur asked. He looked at Merlin and then down at his own hands, as if nervous he might levitate something without meaning to.

"It depends on how connected you are with nature. People like Gaius and other healers have an easier time tapping in to the source of magic. Most people are born without much ability at all. If you wanted to do magic, Arthur, it would take a great deal of energy and time for even the simplest of spells. And then sometimes, people are born with an extremely strong affinity and connection to magic."

"Like Morgana," Arthur said.

"Morgana's strong, yes. I'm even stronger."

Gwen was narrowing her eyes. "I want to try."

"Gwen!" Arthur spluttered indignantly.

"What? I want to try. It sounds exciting!"

Merlin laughed out loud at the look on Arthur's face. "I'll tell you what, Gwen," Merlin said as he stood and began backing out of the room. "Once I'm back and this whole banishment spell thing has been sorted, I'll teach you a thing or two."

He left the room, closing the door just before the goblet that Arthur had just thrown hit the wood.

* * *

**Author's Note: So I've heard many explanations for the magic in _Merlin_. This is just the interpretation I'm going with. By no means is this the "official" reality of the situation. What do you think?**


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Note: I was going to wait to post this one but I just finished it and it's so full of whump and bromance that I couldn't resist showing it to you guys straight of. :) Thanks for all the reviews, guys. It makes me smile every time!**

* * *

Merlin was walking back towards Gaius's chambers, mind whirling. There was so much to think about. He only had a few days left and then he'd need to leave Camelot. There was still so much he had to do. Mentally, he went over the spell for connecting two stones together. He'd need to do that, teach Arthur how to use them… and then there was still the matter of packing for his months away from home. He was so busy thinking as he walked that he nearly ran in to a large man going in the opposite direction.

"Sorry – " Merlin said, but stopped short as he looked up into the eyes of Sir Timothy.

"Well, hello, Merlin," Timothy said, his voice dripping with fake courtesy.

Merlin stumbled back and saw that Timothy was not alone. With him were Sir Reagan and four of the men who guarded the castle walls.

"S-sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going," Merlin said. There were six men standing in front of him, all considerably larger than he was himself. With the aid of magic, it would be no problem if they attacked. But if he wanted to prove he wasn't a threat to Camelot…

"You should probably pay more attention," Sir Reagan hissed. His voice was a lot less jovial than Timothy's. He stepped forward menacingly, and Merlin's back hit the wall. His mind froze. He should make an argument – tell them the king wouldn't be pleased, warn them that they were in public… but he could think of nothing.

Reagan grabbed hold of his shoulders, and Timothy took the first punch.

Merlin did his best to defend himself, but six on one was hardly good odds, especially if the six were all trained to fight and the one was a skinny man with no formal training. Still, Merlin did manage to swing his arm around and punch one of the guards in the face. His fist hurt instantly, but the man did grunt in pain and break off, holding his broken nose in anger. Unfortunately, this seemed to make his friends even more intent on blood-lust.

The hits kept coming. His abdomen, face, arms, legs, again and again. A sickening pain was covering every inch of his body. It took several minutes for the fight to go out of him. Only when the young warlock had slumped against the wall, unconscious, did the knights and guards back off.

One of the guards looked mildly perturbed. "We didn't kill 'im, did we?"

"And so what if we did?" Reagan growled.

"He's alive. We aren't sadistic men," Timothy said sternly. "We're following the orders of a Lord. You all remember what Lord Samuel said. We are merely teaching the boy a lesson about what it means to be loyal to Camelot."

With that, the six men walked off, one of the guards still grumbling about his bleeding nose.

* * *

Merlin woke up still slumped against the wall. He couldn't be certain, but he felt as if he had only been unconscious for a couple of moments. He attempted to stand, and felt a searing pain flow through him.

"Ah," he grunted, falling back against the wall. He took a deep breath and felt every bone in his body protest. "Great. Just what I needed right now," he muttered to himself, trying to control the pain with shallow breaths.

He heard footsteps coming around the corner. Merlin felt his heart speed up. If this was Timothy and the others coming back for more… he wasn't sure he could take it.

"_Merlin_?" Arthur's voice said, laced with disbelief. Merlin turned his head with difficulty to see Arthur run over to him and drop to his knees. "What – who…" the king spluttered.

"I'm alright," Merlin said, gasping in pain as Arthur put a hand on his arm.

"It is _so_ annoying when you say that," Arthur said, grimacing. Merlin coughed and then groaned in pain, practically folding in half as Arthur tried to help him to his feet. "Who did this?" he demanded.

"Nobody. It's nothing. Arthur – " Merlin hissed in pain as Arthur tried to help Merlin take a step forward. He folded forward, and Arthur helped lower him back to the floor.

"Merlin, what the hell is the matter with you?" Arthur said harshly.

"_What_?" Merlin said, panting and leaning against the wall heavily. Arthur slid down to sit beside him.

"You heard me."

"I'm in pain and you're insulting me!"

"Well _why are you in pain_?" Arthur growled. "You could have _defended_ yourself. You're the most powerful man in the whole world from what you keep telling me, and yet you let yourself get pummeled by an over-confident, stupid bully!"

"Okay, I'm not having this conversation with you."

"Well, I'm not going anywhere, and you _can't_ go anywhere, so…"

"Oh yeah?" Merlin said. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, and then muttered a string of words in the ancient tongue. A golden glow surrounded him for a moment, and when it dissipated, Merlin relaxed into the wall with a sigh of relief. "There. See?"

He jumped to his feet and Arthur followed suit. Merlin rolled his shoulders and winced as the last few remnants of pain fell away from him. The king spoke, is voice slightly awkward but serious. "You just scared the hell out of me, I'll have you know."

"Aw. Never knew you cared," Merlin said, mocking.

"Oh, shut up. And never do that again."

"It wasn't a big deal. I go through a bit of pain and then I heal myself. It's better than using magic against Camelot's knights – "

"A _knight_ did this to you?"

"Oops."

"Names. Now."

"No."

"Merlin – "

"Arthur, I don't have time for this. I'm leaving Camelot in two days and there's too much to do."

This line of thought brought Arthur up short. He looked away from Merlin, leaning against the wall. Merlin stood beside him.

"What were you doing over here, anyway?" Merlin asked.

"Going to find Gwaine, actually. I wanted to talk to him about his ridiculous notion that he's going to be playing bodyguard to me while you're away."

"You need someone to watch over you," Merlin muttered.

Arthur rolled his head to the side to look at Merlin. "What, so you asked one of Camelot's knights to trail me around and watch out for danger?" The king rolled his eyes.

Merlin's eyes were bright with a humorous retort, but then suddenly his expression clouded. "I can't believe I have to leave you undefended," he finally muttered. Arthur met his eye for a moment and then looked away. He didn't much like the idea, either.

"I'll be fine."

"You'd better be. And if you're not, you'll have me to answer to."

Arthur chuckled lightly, clapping Merlin on the shoulder. "Yes, sir."

* * *

**Author's Note: I'm thinking about starting a We-Hate-Samuel and Phineas and Timothy and Reagan-Club. Who's with me? :)**


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Note: What do ya think? :)**

* * *

Arthur insisted on walking with Merlin back to Gaius's chambers. Merlin had grumbled, saying that it was completely unnecessary, but Arthur had been insistent.

When they entered the room, Gaius looked up, surprised to see the king accompanying his young charge. "Is everything alright?" he asked, coming around to examine Merlin warily.

"I'm perfectly fine, but Arthur's being over-protective and stupid, and –"

"_I'm_ over-protective? Oh, that's a good one."

Gaius rolled his eyes. "Stop your bickering. What's happened this time, Merlin?"

"Got set upon by a group of knights and guards. I already healed myself. It's not even a big deal."

"A group?" Arthur said shortly. "How big of a group?"

Merlin sighed but decided that Arthur would just keep asking if he didn't come clean. "Six."

Arthur's vision went hazy for a minute with anger, and his face darkened menacingly. "Just give me their damn names, Merlin."

"Nope."

"You're infuriating!"

"Arthur," Gaius broke in gently. "Merlin has a lot to accomplish in the next few days. Might I suggest we all get a bit of rest?"

The king looked between Gaius and Merlin for a moment. He seemed ready to argue, but finally relaxed and turned away, headed for the door. "Fine. But just… Merlin, don't be such a martyr all the time, alright?"

Merlin shrugged. "Can't promise that, can I?"

Arthur made a sound low in his throat. "Idiot."

"Prat."

"Good_night_, Merlin," Arthur snapped.

"Goodnight, your majesty."

Arthur closed the door with what might have been a bit too much force, and Merlin grinned. Gaius looked at his young charge with concern and affection. It was going to be strange indeed, living without him for two full months. He'd gotten rather used to Merlin's presence.

"Why didn't you defend yourself?" Gaius asked. His voice was curious with just a hint of disturbance.

"I… I can't use magic. Not against Camelot's knights. Can you imagine the rumors? What they would have said?"

"But is that enough of a reason to let yourself be hurt like this?"

"I wouldn't have let them do serious damage. I… they're just trying to teach me a lesson. They're ignorant. It's not their fault – "

"Not their fault? Merlin, they are attacking a man who isn't even fighting back. They _are_ at fault for this." Gaius's voice, normally so calm, was raised slightly in anger.

"Listen – in the long run, showing them that I harbor no ill will is only going to help."

Gaius stared at his young charge for a moment and then shook his head. "You're showing an example to the people that says this behavior is acceptable. It is not."

"And Arthur's made that clear to them. Listen – these men aren't publicly humiliating me. They're waiting until I'm alone. They're trying to change _me_, not make a public service announcement." Merlin heard his own voice raising as well, and fought to control it. "Listen, Gaius, while I'm gone you and Arthur and everyone else can keep on working on the people. For now, if I let them beat up on me a bit it only shows them that I'm not some big bad evil sorcerer. They _want_ me to retaliate, because that means they've one. Besides, most everyone is on the road to acceptance by now. With time I do believe even some of Samuel's followers might come around."

Gaius looked at Merlin for a long moment, weight what the young man had said. "This does not seem right."

"It's not. But I'm not retaliating." Merlin paused for a moment. "Besides, in a couple of days I won't even be around for them to attack."

The subject of Merlin leaving brought Gaius and Merlin both away from the subject. Again, the thought of a Camelot without Merlin burned through Gaius's brain. Merlin felt his stomach twist at the prospect.

"What all do you need to do to prepare to leave?" Gaius asked. Merlin looked at him, his expression sad.

"I don't want to leave, Gaius."

"I know."

Merlin rubbed a hand through his hair, his expression one of overwhelming exhaustion. "I'll need to pack," he finally, said, voice matter-of-fact. "And I'm going to use a simple linking charm on stones to allow me to communicate with Camelot while I'm away."

"Good thinking. That will certainly put Arthur's mind at ease."

Merlin looked at his guardian for a long moment. "Gaius, I feel like I'm letting Arthur down. I'm supposed to be protecting him, and now all I'm doing is running away and causing him more stress." Gaius took a few steps forward and laid a hand on Merlin's shoulder. His expression was calming.

"Arthur can handle himself. You know that."

"I _don't_ know that. I feel like the two of us can't go one day without saving each other. What the hell are we going to do for two months?"

Gaius's eyebrows pulled together. "There is no alternative, Merlin. This is going to be difficult, but I don't see any other way." Merlin nodded at Gaius's words. He knew his guardian was right, but that didn't make it any easier to accept.

"Who would do this, Gaius?" Merlin asked quietly. He had gone into his room and Gaius followed, standing in the doorway as Merlin pulled a bag out from under his bed and began folding a few shirts to put into it.

"It's hard to say."

"That man… the one that killed Lord Harvey. He said that… that one day I'd thank him. That all of this would be for the best. I just don't get how anybody could force a man to leave his home like this and then say it was a kindness."

Gaius's expression was kind when Merlin looked up to meet his eye. "Now that the world is beginning to learn of your magic, it is only to be expected that the greedy men of this world would want you on their side."

"My magic is not going to be a force for evil," Merlin said crossly. "And anyone who knows me at all would know that."

"Well, the sorcerer who banished you obviously saw the potential for a very powerful ally."

"He got off to a _great_ start. I know I always want to be best friends with the people who use magic against me."

Gaius chuckled lightly, while Merlin kept filling his bags with the few possessions he needed. Gaius walked into the room and picked up two smooth stones from the table beside Merlin's bed.

"What are these?" he asked. Merlin went over and scooped them up, staring at them intently.

"I'm going to charm them so there's a link of communication between me and Camelot." He looked at the stones in concentration and then his eyes glowed gold. Gaius watched as Merlin whispered a string of words and each of the stones glowed a deep red, a light blue, and then a burst of strong gold before falling back to their natural grey color.

"You're giving one to Arthur?" Gaius asked.

Merlin nodded. "I'll teach him how to send me signals. He can tell me everything's alright, or he can tell me if something's gone wrong. And I can reciprocate."

Gaius looked at Merlin, suspicion clouding his features. "If you were in trouble, you _would_ tell us, wouldn't you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You have been known to let yourself get in danger because you didn't want anybody else involved."

Merlin rolled his eyes. "I promise if I'm in trouble, I'll tell Arthur. There, satisfied?"

"No," Gaius said, but he smiled and patted Merlin on the shoulder. "I'm truly going to miss you, Merlin."

"I'm going to miss you too."

* * *

**Author's Note: Thanks!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Author's Note: We are soo close to the Merlin leaves Camelot business. I know that this story has been moving by really slowly plot-wise and I'm so grateful that you have stuck with me.**

* * *

Merlin spent the next day teaching Arthur how to use the stones. It was a simple process, but Arthur was so squeamish about using objects of magic that he was having a difficult time grasping the idea.

"Arthur _stop_ being such an idiot and just _listen_."

"I could throw you in the dungeons for that sort of behavior."

"Yeah if you wanted to kill me," Merlin said snidely. Arthur snapped around to stare at him.

"Not funny."

"Sorry."

"How are you feeling?" Gwen asked. The three of them were in Arthur's chambers, sitting around with the two stones. Gwen had been asking this once every twenty minutes or so. Merlin knew he could start feeling Gaius's delaying potion wear off any minute now, so he had his bags ready just in case. However, he was hoping it would hold off until the following morning. The thought of leaving Camelot was still making him sick to his stomach.

"Nothing yet, Gwen. I'll tell you if it starts."

Arthur and his wife shared a look, and the king raised his eyebrows. "Would you, though?" he asked Merlin.

"What?"

"Knowing you, you're going to wait until you're at the brink of death before you finally get yourself out of trouble," Arthur said. His voice was joking with an undercurrent of worry.

Merlin sighed. "I promise, alright? Now let's just try this again – "

Arthur took one of the stones and stared at it. Then, with great determination he closed his eyes and grasped the smooth round object between his hands and squeezed. Merlin stared at the stone in his own hands as it grew extremely cool to the touch and turned an icy blue. "Yes!" Arthur said, raising the stone up in victory.

"Good," Merlin said, smiling. "Now – try it for the danger signal."

Arthur focused in once more, and pressed again on the stone between his palms, thinking of calling for help and pulling Merlin back to Camelot. Merlin's stone glowed red and grew warm again in his hands.

"See? Not so hard, is it?" Merlin said, grinning.

"So… that's magic, then."

"Well…" Merlin shrugged. "Really you're just accessing the magic I've already applied to an object. You don't have to call any of your own magic to the surface in order to do this."

Arthur looked at the stone in his hands, tossing it and catching it a few times. "And if I wanted to?"

Merlin almost managed to hold back his expression of disbelief, but didn't quite manage it. "What – try magic?"

Arthur chuckled at the look on his friend's face. "Yeah. Go on, teach me."

Merlin shook his head for a moment, trying to decide if he was dreaming or not. Finally, he smirked. "Alright then. I'll teach you a simple spell."

* * *

An hour later, Arthur was red in the face and growling with anger. "Why isn't anything _happening_?" he groaned again.

Merlin made the mistake of catching Guinevere's eye and the two of them erupted into a fit of laughter.

"I _told_ you it wouldn't be easy!" Merlin gasped through the laughter.

"But you said this is something you've been doing since infancy!" Arthur spluttered.

Merlin shrugged and his eyes flashed gold. He didn't even need to say the incantation to make Arthur's candelabra dance off of the desk and fly through the air to hover above their heads. "I'm ridiculously powerful," Merlin said smugly.

Arthur stood and made a snatch at the candelabra, grabbing it swiftly. "_Give_ me that."

Merlin looked at Arthur and Gwen and felt his heart beat faster. It had been so much… _fun_ to just sit around and joke with them. His magic was out in the open and Arthur was still his best friend. He had Gwen, and the round table knights, and Gaius… things were good. Things lately had been so amazing other than the occasional squabble with Samuel and his followers. The idea of leaving this happiness to a world where he was alone… he couldn't stand it. And even worse than that was the idea that Arthur would be _completely_ vulnerable to magical attacks during that time.

Although Arthur had announced that magic was legalized in Camelot, only a few minor healers had surfaced publicly. There was still a lot of anxiety around the issue. Merlin could hardly blame them. It was certainly going to be difficult for a while to be a person trained in magic. However, he was confident that in time magic would be a blossoming part of Camelot once more. The point was… until then, he was one of the few magic users – and certainly the most powerful one – to be open about it in Camelot. When he left, there wouldn't be anyone left to protect Arthur.

"So… point is, I'm hopeless, then," Arthur said jokingly.

"With magic, apparently so. If you _really_ wanted to learn you'd have to go at it with a lot more patience than that. If you studied hard every day… you might be able to see movement in a month or so."

Arthur's eyes widened. "A month just to get something to levitate." He glanced at Merlin, then at Gwen. "Not even a little bit worth it."

Merlin had to smile at that. The thought of an Arthur Pendragon who knew magic was an odd one indeed. Too odd. Besides, the prat barely had enough grasp on the magic of nature to summon up the barest hints.

Merlin had just stood to bid the king and queen a good night and head back to Gaius's chambers, when suddenly a searing pain shot through him. He gasped, collapsing forward on his chair and closing his eyes as a wave of sickening agony passed over him. Arthur and Gwen stood immediately and rushed forward, each grabbing one of his shoulders anxiously.

"Merlin?"

"Are you alright?" Gwen asked. There was no response for a moment.

"_Merlin!_" Arthur yelled, shaking him slightly.

The young warlock groaned and opened his eyes. "It's wearing off. The potion is starting to wear off."

Arthur and Merlin made eye-contact. The prospect of saying goodbye was looming all too near, and neither of the young men were sure how they would handle it when the moment came.

* * *

**Author's Note: Uh oh...**


	15. Chapter 15

**Author's Note: This chapter was a tricky one for me... I wanted to balance the goodbye with the understanding that Arthur isn't exactly one to get all cheesy all the time. It was a hard one to write though... sniff.**

* * *

Arthur and Gwen helped Merlin back to Gaius's chambers. On their way up they had passed Corwin, who was just leaving the physician after completing some chores for him. Corwin had taken one look at Merlin, being supported heavily between the king and queen, and dashed off to find the round table knights.

They congregated in Gaius's chambers while Merlin grabbed his bag from his room, packed with all he could carry for the two months ahead of him. A solemn silence fell over the room. Finally, Leon broke it.

"Where will you go?"

Merlin was already struggling for breath. By his estimations, he'd have a few hours maximum until he would need to be out of Camelot. Corwin was downstairs, preparing him a horse. "I thought… Ealdor. I… I need to go. Soon."

Wordlessly, the room exchanged glances. Leon stepped forward and clapped Merlin on the shoulder. Percival and Elyan followed suit.

"You come back, alright?" Elyan said.

"I will," Merlin promised.

Gwaine stepped forward. He was struggling to find anything encouraging or light-hearted to say. He finally settled for pulling his friend into a hug and speaking into his ear. "Two months, Merlin. If you're a day late I'm going to have to come and find you, alright?"

Merlin smiled. "I won't be late."

The four round table knights exited the room, leaving only Gwen, Gaius, and Arthur.

Gwen came forward and grabbed both of Merlin's hands in her own. "I know it's only two months, but… I'm going to miss you." She stood on her toes and kissed Merlin's cheek, and the two embraced. Through the pain of Harvey's spell, still acting on him, he felt something in the pit of his stomach twist. What if something happened to Gwen while he was away? What would that do to him? To Arthur? To Camelot? Gwen pulled back and brushed a tear from the corner of her eye. "I'll let you..." she trailed off, kissing Arthur lightly before exiting the room.

Arthur looked at Gaius and Merlin for a moment, and then brushed a hand through his hair. "I'll walk out with you, shall I?" Merlin nodded, grateful, as Arthur stepped back and exited the room to wait for him. He turned to Gaius.

"You'll be fine, Merlin," Gaius said, a kind smile on his face. "We all worry, but two months is not all that much time in the scheme of things. I'm sure you will be back here before you've even missed it."

Merlin smiled at Gaius's attempt to cheer him up, but the grin fell from his face just as quickly. "Watch over Arthur for me, will you?" he finally said. He stepped forward and the two shared a hug.

Merlin grimaced as a fresh and much stronger wave of pain washed over him. Gaius watched in alarm as Merlin stumbled a bit while picking up his bag from the floor by the door. "Don't delay, Merlin." His voice was solemn.

"I won't." One final look at his mentor and friend, and Merlin exited Gaius's chambers.

Arthur was waiting a little ways down in the corridor. He was leaning against the wall with his arms folded. Merlin had to smile at the look on his face. He had scarcely ever seen the king looking so uncomfortable, and he knew that his friend was more than a little awkward about the prospect of some big goodbye. Still – it was a sign of their strong friendship that he hadn't run off to hide at the prospect of sharing his feelings.

Arthur fell into step beside Merlin and the two friends walked silently along the halls of the castle. They made it all the way out to Merlin's prepared horse without saying a word. Merlin could feel the pain getting worse. He knew he had best get out of Camelot sooner rather than later, but some sort of goodbye with Arthur was inevitable.

Arthur looked from Merlin to the horse and then back at Merlin. He seemed incapable of speaking, so Merlin started.

"Got your stone?" he asked.

Arthur nodded and patted a pocket in his coat. "Yeah."

"Good."

Arthur looked at the darkening sky and sighed. "It's certainly not going to help your credibility that you're riding off into the night without much warning."

Merlin shrugged. "You can tell everyone I'll be back. And then when I _do_ come back, they'll have to trust us." There was a pause while Merlin tried to figure out how to say what he really didn't want to. Suddenly, another shot of pain lanced through him. He winced, cringing backwards into the waiting horse.

"Merlin?" Arthur said, rushing forward a few steps and putting a hand on either side of the warlock's shoulders.

"I don't have much time left," Merlin gasped as the pain subsided back to a dull throb.

Arthur nodded in understanding. His face was pale. "Alright then. You listen to me," he said sternly. "You come back _exactly_ two months from now or I'll come and bring you back myself."

"I will."

Arthur still had his hands on Merlin's shoulders. He glanced behind him as if checking to see if they were being watched, and then grimaced and pulled Merlin into a brief hug. Merlin hugged back, shocked. Arthur pulled away so quickly Merlin wasn't even sure it had happened, but he smiled nonetheless.

"I'll see you soon," he said, swinging up into the saddle.

"Very soon," Arthur said solemnly.

Merlin nudged the horse and he began moving forward. "Don't get yourself into trouble while I'm gone."

"Oh _you're_ one to talk," Arthur scoffed. He watched with furrowed eyebrows as Merlin rode off slowly, approaching the gates of the castle. The king stayed in the courtyard until Merlin had rounded the corner and disappeared from sight.

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you!**


	16. Chapter 16

**Author's Note: No me gusta writing chapters where Arthur and Merlin aren't together. :(**

* * *

Merlin felt the physical pain ease as he rode away, but the relief was not enough to ease his mind. He had decided to start with going to Ealdor to visit his mother. In the chaos of the banishment spell he hadn't been able to get word to her, so Hunith would get a surprise. However, Merlin wasn't sure how long he could stay there – trouble seemed to follow him almost as much as it followed Arthur, and he didn't want to put his mother or any of his old friends in danger.

Riding around in the woods and across fields was something Merlin had been doing a lot in the past few years, but always with Arthur by his side. It was all decidedly more boring without someone to talk to.

* * *

Arthur didn't have much time to dwell on the fact that Merlin was gone – he was immediately swept into meetings with advisers and then once his days was done, he and the knights did a bit of sparring. By the time he made it back to his rooms for the night, he was tired enough to drop off immediately to sleep.

Merlin had popped into his head a few times throughout the day but he was doing the best he could not to think about it. Two months wasn't really the issue at hand anymore – he just knew he'd never be able to live with himself if something happened to his friend and he wasn't there to protect him.

In some way, Arthur blamed himself for all of this. He had decided that Merlin's magic should be publicized immediately, and he had set about to do it. He hadn't thought over the complexities or the deep-rooted feelings of distrust in the hearts of his people. He had shoved Merlin into an impossible situation and now he was leaving Camelot. Inevitably, there would be terrible rumors circulating about Merlin now that he was gone, and Arthur wasn't sure even his status as king could silence them.

* * *

Ealdor was a comforting blanket and a reminder of peace. It was also a reminder of Will and his death, which was something Merlin did his best not to think on too much when he was in Camelot.

Hunith and been surprised, overjoyed, and then concerned upon her son's arrival. Since he had gone to Camelot, all of his visits back home had been because of bad news, either in Camelot or in Ealdor itself. This time was different – while Merlin being cursed certainly wasn't good news, the solution had already been put in place. Now all that was left to do was wait.

"So you'll stay here for a few months, then," Hunith had said, happiness creeping into her voice as she realized what all this meant.

"I'll stay for a while," Merlin said edgily. "I'm not sure if I can stay the whole time."

"Why not? Are we not good enough for you here anymore?" Hunith joked. Merlin smiled at his mother but wondered how to respond. He couldn't tell her that he was anxious to leave because he worried that the sorcerer who had done this to him would be after him. If he told Hunith that, she would only be more intent to have him stay.

"I just… it's a rare opportunity to get out of Camelot and I'm excited to… you know… be on my own for a bit." The lie was a week one, and Merlin knew Hunith would see right through it.

"You're missing everybody already, aren't you?" she said, smiling sweetly.

Merlin shrugged, but he could hardly deny it. "Yeah. I left Camelot three days ago and I know it seems like nothing, but I know from experience that three days is more than enough time for things to go horribly wrong."

Hunith sighed and came over to brush Merlin's hair away from his face. "You've been through some terrible things, haven't you?"

Merlin wrote letters to his mother, but he always censored the more dangerous of the activities he had been getting into. Things were just easier if his mother believed that the most danger he had in his life was getting cut by a thorn for a plant he was collecting for Gaius, or exhaustion from doing Arthur's many chores.

"I've been through a lot, mother. But I am stronger for it."

"You've always been one of the strongest people I ever knew, my son," Hunith said, reaching up to tug at another section of Merlin's hair. "And you _desperately_ need a haircut, my boy."

Merlin laughed as his mother pushed on his shoulders, forcing him down into a chair before running off in search of scissors. No matter how much he missed Camelot, it was good to be home.

* * *

"Your majesty," a supercilious voice said. Arthur closed his eyes and dropped his head to his chest, defeated. He had managed to last three whole days without discussing Merlin's absence with Lord Samuel, but it appeared that his good fortune had deserted him.

He spun around to face the Lord, who was standing with false respect in the doorway to the throne room.

"Come in," Arthur said, already tired of the conversation that was to follow.

"Your majesty, I could not help but notice that the boy Merlin appears to have… run off."

Despite dreading this confrontation, Arthur had been prepared for it: "Yes, well, when he saved all of our lives last week a banishment spell was placed on him by the sorcerer impersonating the late Lord Harvey."

Samuel raised his eyebrows as if this were the most ridiculous thing he'd ever heard. "A… banishment spell."

"Yes. If Merlin had stayed in Camelot, he would have died."

Lord Samuel was silent for a moment. He took a few cautious steps toward the king and then spoke. "That's convenient, wouldn't you say?"

Arthur grimaced as he fought back the words he wanted to say. "Actually, it's rather inconvenient seeing as it leaves us unprotected from magical threats."

Lord Samuel hesitated for only a moment before speaking again, and his words were enough to turn Arthur a bright and angry red. "Have you perhaps considered that Merlin's absence might mean we've finally _lost_ the threat, sire?"

_I cannot punch a lord in the face_, Arthur reminded himself sternly. "I haven't considered that," he said through his teeth. "But – perhaps it is time we all congregated for a meeting to discuss everyone's… _thoughts_ on the issue."

Arthur knew he'd have to be open with these idiotic men if he ever hoped to win them to his side. He also knew he was going to hate this part of being king.

* * *

**Author's Note: My favorite part of this chapter: "I cannot punch a lord in the face" :) What's yours?**


	17. Chapter 17

**Author's Note: Thanks for reading!**

* * *

Merlin lasted nearly four weeks in Ealdor before he got restless. It wasn't that he hadn't loved all of this – visiting his mother, Will's parents, the little twins Danny and Perry who had grown into men since Merlin had last seen them… He had missed these trees and these houses and most of all these people. But… it was time to leave. He still had a little over a month before he'd be able to be back in Camelot, but he wanted to use that time tracking down some old friends of his.

Merlin was slightly nervous about going to the druids for help, but he knew that if anybody had information about this Harvey-impersonator, it would be them. I mean, how else would that man have known the name Emrys?

The young warlock glanced up at the sky and saw the beautiful colors of sunset surrounding him. As was his ritual at this time every day, he pulled his enchanted stone out of his pocket and squeezed it lightly, sending a signal to Arthur that all was still well. He waited a few moments, and then his stone flashed blue in response. It wasn't much, but the sign that everything was alright back in Camelot did do a lot to calm him at the end of an anxious day of worrying.

"Mother?" Merlin called into the house as he entered. He found Hunith by the fire, heating a pot of stew for the night's meal. "Mother, I wanted to speak with you about –"

"You're leaving?" Hunith called over her shoulder.

"How did you …"

"Darling, you've hardly been subtle about it. You've packed your things up."

Merlin glanced at the bag in the corner of the room and smiled sheepishly. "Right."

"Where will you go? I thought that you still had a month before you could return to the castle?"

"I need to… visit some old friends, mother."

Hunith glanced up from her work and narrowed her eyes at him. "Merlin, you be careful, do you hear me? I don't want to hear anything about you getting yourself into trouble, understand?"

Merlin smiled at his mother and came to join here by the fire. "I promise. I'll get some rest and then leave in the morning, alright?"

Hunith sighed but nodded. "Alright. As long as you promise to never go so long without visiting again," she admonished. Merlin shrugged sheepishly.

He had decided to seek out the druids as best as he could. He didn't know who to look for exactly, but if he made it known he was asking around… hopefully the peaceful druids would learn he sought their help. As he lay down to fall asleep one last time in the home of his childhood, his mind wandered to Camelot. The reassuring messages from Arthur were helping, certainly, but Merlin still couldn't help but wonder _why_ nothing had gone wrong. If "Harvey" had been trying to get him out of Camelot, he'd succeeded. So why had nothing happened since then? What was this man's game?

* * *

"He's the most stubborn man I've ever met!" Arthur complained loudly to Gwen. "I've sat down with Lord Samuel and his idiotic men so many times I'm losing track, and they won't concede to _anything_!"

Merlin had been gone from Camelot for a little over a month now, and Arthur was getting cranky. In part he was stressed from worry for his friend, but it wasn't just Merlin that Arthur was concerned about. Having a powerful sorcerer on his side had been a comfort, to say the very least. What if Camelot was attacked by a magical force while Merlin was still away? What the hell were they supposed to do then?

"Arthur, relax. You have most of the lords on your side. So what if there are one or two who don't like the situation all that much? They are a minority."

Arthur sat beside his wife on the edge of his bed. "It's just… it's so frustrating that they won't listen to a single thing I have to say."

"Well, to be fair, Arthur, they are probably saying the same of you," Gwen pointed out. Arthur looked at Gwen, ready to argue, but eventually sighed deeply.

"I hate that you're right."

"Get used to it," Gwen said, smiling and kissing Arthur on the cheek. "Now, we've got three weeks or so and then Merlin will be returning to us. When the nobles and knights all see that you've been telling the truth about the banishment spell, then they'll have to question their own views."

The thought of Merlin, out there on his own, always made Arthur nervous. "Where do you think he is?" he asked his wife, his voice soft.

"Maybe he's still with his mother," Gwen suggested kindly. "And even if he's not… you know he's doing alright."

"Or so he says. Gwen, you know him. If he _was_ in some sort of danger he'd probably hide it just so I wouldn't go after him and get myself into trouble!" the king's voice gained in volume by the end, reminding Gwen so much of the arguments she'd heard Merlin and Arthur get into so often that she laughed.

"He's a good friend for it," the queen said to her husband.

"An _annoying_ friend for it," Arthur corrected grimly.

"If Merlin was in danger, he'd tell you," Gwen said, absently picking up the stone that Arthur had set on a table in his room.

"Maybe," Arthur said, letting his mind wander to what his friend might be up to. "He said he might try and track down some people who could tell him about Harvey's impersonator."

"I must admit I'm curious about that as well," Gwen said, brow furrowing.

"Regardless, we're just three weeks away from his return. Whatever still needs doing will be a lot easier once we're – I mean, once he's back."

Gwen smiled lovingly at her husband. It was so touching to see how much Arthur depended on and cared for Merlin. Still, it made her anxious. She thought about how it would feel if anything happened to Merlin. The thought made her feel sick, so she could hardly imagine what it would do to Arthur. She wasn't entirely sure her husband would survive it if Merlin were not to return.

* * *

**Author's Note: Please review. :)**


	18. Chapter 18

**Author's Note: Given that I'm in the middle of moving, things are a little hectic. Sorry for the wait and unfortunately that will probably be the case for a while. Thanks for your patience!**

* * *

In all, finding the druids had been much easier than Merlin would have guessed. He wandered in a general direction for a few days until one day, sitting in a tavern and chatting with the man serving him drinks, a hooded figure approached.

"Emrys," a man's voice whispered. "You're to come with me."

Merlin was of course skeptical, but he rose to follow the hooded man. He felt his magic rise up to the surface in preparation for a quick escape, but luckily it was not necessary. The hooded figure waited until they were under the cover of the forest and then he lowered his hood.

The face beneath it was younger than Merlin would have guessed from listening to the voice. The man was about the same age as Merlin himself, with bright blond hair and piercing green eyes.

"My name is Brian," he said, bowing to Merlin.

Merlin smiled awkwardly and nodded his head. "I'm… Emrys, I suppose."

The young Brian looked fairly awestruck at the very idea that he was in the same place as Emrys, but he maintained a professional demeanor on their walk through the woods.

It took a good two hours to reach the camp of the druids, deep within the trees. This wasn't a group of druids that Merlin had encountered before. As he walked into the camp behind Brian and looked around at the tents and fires, he couldn't find a single familiar face among them.

Suddenly, Brian stopped and bowed low to the ground. Merlin looked around in surprise and his eyes lit on an older man, clad in deep emerald robes. He was clearly the leader of this group of druids, and Merlin, catching on, bowed alongside Brian.

"Rise, young warlock. You do not need to bow in my presence." Merlin raised his head to the old man, who smiled at him through a face filled with wrinkles. "My name is Koran. Welcome to our home."

* * *

Before Merlin knew it, he found himself seated around a fire with Koran, Brian, and a few other men and women, all of whom seemed to find him extremely interesting. It was rather disconcerting to be stared at with such keen attention, but he kept his eyes on Koran as he ate the food they had brought him, and powered through, asking the question he had come here to ask in the first place.

"I was wondering… a while back, a sorcerer came to Camelot and attacked me."

Merlin wasn't sure what reaction he was expecting, but he was rather shocked to see Koran nod sagely at this news and wait for Merlin to continue. When he didn't say anything more, Koran responded, smiling faintly.

"We have ears everywhere, Emrys. We heard what happened."

"Ah. I see. I was wondering, I guess… do you know anything about it? Could you help me figure out who that man was?"

Koran looked around the circle at the other Druids, and Merlin watched them all, waiting for some sign that they could help. He wondered what he would do if they didn't have any information. Perhaps he would just wait out the next few weeks, go back to Camelot, and try and go back to his life. He'd wait, and be ready whenever "Harvey" decided to strike again. But if the druids could help him…

"What makes you think we know anything?" Another of the druids spoke. She was a woman with very short hair, cropped nearly all off. She had a stern look about her, and Merlin knew she wasn't one to be crossed.

He gulped and tried to think of phrasing his answer in a way that seemed non-threatening. "He knew the name Emrys. Not many people do."

The stern woman clamped her mouth shut, looking concerned. Her eyes flicked to Koran and then away again. The old man spoke.

"There was a man among us once. He… he had different ideas about magic than most of us." Koran's voice was full of concern, fear, and a bit of regret. "We tried to keep him with us. To make him understand that magic is peace and nature, not fear and power. But… one day, he felt he could not stay with us any longer. He left, and a few of his followers went with him."

Merlin waited for the name, but Koran seemed hesitant to give it.

"Look. All of you should know – I'm a good person," Merlin began, addressing the group at large. "I stand for peace, too. Whoever this person is, I need to know. I need to protect Camelot at all costs."

The fierce woman turned to Merlin, her eyes narrowed. "And that is where you differ from us, Emrys. We know you are more powerful than all of us, but you _don't_ stand for peace. You stand for Camelot, and for King Arthur."

Merlin raised his eyes, ready to argue, when Koran stepped in.

"Talia, please. Remember to keep your temper in check. Merlin does stand for King Arthur. But I believe that with Arthur leading Camelot, peace will be achieved in the land. And that's something we all want."

Koran's voice commanded respect and attention, and the fierce woman, Talia, was silenced. She nodded in subservience to Koran's authority, and Koran turned to Merlin, his face still hesitant, but also resigned.

"It hurts me to send you after him, because I feel if in some way I am giving up on one of my own."

Merlin looked down, finding himself somehow unable to meet Koran's eye. "I promise I won't hurt him. Unless…"

"Unless it is the only way to protect Arthur," Koran finished. Slightly sheepish, Merlin nodded, and Koran smiled. "I understand," the old man continued. "Arthur is important to you."

"More than anything else, I have to make sure he's safe."

Koran looked around at the other druids in the inner circle and finally turned to stare at Merlin straight on. "The man you are looking for goes by the name of Tabor. What you must understand about him is that he does not think himself your enemy. He used to speak of you as a god, Emrys. The man who could lead Camelot out of the dark ages. He… well, in some ways he wants the same thing you want. He wants magic to prosper in Camelot."

Merlin glanced sharply at Koran. He knew that the old man felt protective of someone he had once called a friend, but he wasn't about to be compared to a man who had murdered Lord Harvey in cold blood and threatened the entire nobility of Camelot. Koran saw the look in Merlin's eyes, and his own eyes softened in understanding.

"You and Tabor are very different, Emrys. You believe that prosperity means peace. He thinks that in order for magic to really come back to Camelot entirely, sorcerers must have the power. And that means ridding the land of a certain King Arthur."

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you!**


	19. Chapter 19

**Author's Note: Thanks for your patience!**

* * *

Arthur was in the middle of a discussion with some of his lords. He was grateful to have Lord Orwick and several of the other men on his side, but neither Samuel nor Phineas would budge on the issue of magic.

Finally, getting desperate, Arthur turned to the group as a whole. "Merlin is so damn protective of me and of Camelot that he's allowed himself to get pummeled just to avoid using magic against anyone here!"

The room was silent for a moment.

"What are you talking about?" Phineas finally ventured in his nasally voice.

"Don't pretend you don't know," Arthur spat. "Out of some misguided attempt to "fix" my friend Merlin, there have been… _incidents_, shall we say, where people have been beating up on him to prove a point!"

Arthur had no real proof that any of it was Lord Samuel's doing, but he had a pretty good idea that Samuel, and possibly Phineas as well, had ordered the attacks on Merlin. This was more or less confirmed by the expressions on their faces – the two lords glanced at one another nervously and then away, and then Lord Samuel spoke.

"My Liege, surely a boy of Merlin's considerable powers would be able to defend himself against such attacks."

Arthur closed his eyes for a moment, fighting for control. "Under motivations almost as misguided as the attacks themselves, Merlin has decided to never use magic against anyone in Camelot."

Samuel raised his eyes at this one, clearly disbelieving. "He won't defend himself against attack."

"Not with magic, apparently," Arthur growled. "The idiot – " he checked himself, remembering who he was talking to – "Merlin doesn't want the distrust of magic to grow. He feels that if any knight or other trusted person of Camelot were able to claim Merlin did magic against them, the legitimacy of his power and indeed of my rule would be compromised."

There was something very satisfying about the way Lord Samuel seemed to have no response to this. Eventually, however, he found words. "But he did strike back against the knights, yes?"

Arthur paused for a long moment. "What?"

"I mean…" and now the Lord was scrambling. "You said, 'not with magic.' So… he did defend himself."

"I mean… maybe he threw a few punches, or…" Arthur looked at Lord Samuel, eyes narrowing. "So what's your point? He was set on by six trained men!"

"And he attacked men of higher standing than himself," Phineas cut in.

"Oh, you two have _got_ to be kidding me," Arthur grumbled to himself. He was so infuriated he wasn't sure he could form a coherent thought at this point, but luckily one of the other Lords picked up the cause.

"Merlin is essentially powerless without the aid of his magic," Orwick said sternly. "He allowed himself to suffer these attacks to prove he has no ill will against the royalty of Camelot, if I'm correct, sire."

Arthur nodded, and Orwick, bolstered by the king's praise, continued. "I'll admit this seems a foolish action for his own personal safety – " the king nodded to Orwick, agreeing – "However, it comes from a place that very badly wants magic to be accepted in this land. How can you all not see what he's done for us?"

Lord Samuel sighed deeply. "The boy is a creature of magic. He could be manipulating your thoughts, Orwick. And yours, your majesty."

"Then why wouldn't he have done the same to you?" another Lord at the table broke in.

"Why would he have turned _all_ of our thoughts," someone else cut in¸ "and left just a few people suspicious? What would be the point?"

"For that matter," another noble said, "if Merlin was after Arthur's life or the throne, he could have had it years ago. What's the hold-up? Why would he reveal his magic to everyone if he was just after power?"

"And furthermore," Orwick picked up the conversation again – "If he were some evil sorcerer, why wouldn't he have disposed of the two of _you_ for dissenting his plans and his purpose at every turn?"

Arthur smiled grimly at the nobles around him. It was amazing to receive this sort of support for Merlin, and he only wished his friend could see it.

Lords Samuel and Phineas glanced at one another. Lord Samuel cleared his throat. He was clearly trying to grab control of the conversation, but he could see that he was outnumbered. "Be all of that as it may, I feel that we have been too hasty to accept the boy in Camelot. Even if he is not after the throne, he may encourage other users of magic to rise up against us."

"If he is after our safety," Phineas said thoughtfully, "why has he left us undefended?"

Arthur sighed and explained the banishment spell for what seemed to be the hundredth time. He felt that Phineas and Samuel were lost causes – their staunch belief in the evil nature of magic rivaled even Uther's.

He had the nobility as a whole on his side. And now that the dissenting nobles knew that _Arthur_ knew what had been happening to Merlin… hopefully their respect for their king would prevent them from any ill-advised attacks on Merlin once the sorcerer returned. If Arthur heard the tiniest whisper of plans against his friend, he wouldn't be responsible for his actions.

And this wasn't all he had to be worried about. Merlin had been banished from Camelot by someone who went through a lot of effort to make it happen. So… where were the attacks? Where was the threat, the war, the enemy to fight? It wouldn't make any sense to get Merlin out of Camelot and then not use that opportunity to strike against it. Arthur couldn't help but be worried, waiting for an attack from who-knew-where and who-knew-who. He could only hope that he was wrong, and that Merlin would return as scheduled a few short weeks from now. Then, whatever happened, they could face it together.

* * *

**Author's Note: No Merlin in this chapter. Sorry!**


	20. Chapter 20

**Author's Note: Thanks for the support, guys! Let me tell ya, Chapter 21 is gonna be a big deal. So... review, por favor!**

* * *

The news of Tabor was frightening to say the least. This man believed truly that Merlin, or rather, Emrys, was an ally for him. He also wanted power over Camelot.

Merlin gripped his stone in his hands and sent a message to Arthur that everything was still alright. Anxiously, he glanced around him at the woods. He had left the druids after spending a night in their camp. Although he still had two weeks left until he was able to enter Camelot again, he began to make his way back in the direction of the castle. He wanted to be as close as he possibly could be so that when the two months were completed, he could be back home as soon as possible.

The day's trek seemed to take no time at all, and before Merlin knew it, the sun was beginning to fall behind the tree-line. In the distance, he could see a break in the trees. He decided he'd head for the clearing and make camp for the night. His mind was whirling with thoughts of Tabor, but he was also beginning to wonder what he was going to do with himself for the next few weeks.

Wryly, he glanced at the sword hanging off the edge of his pack. Maybe he'd practice up on swordplay. It was as good a task as any.

* * *

With less than two weeks to go until Merlin's arrival back in Camelot, Arthur called a meeting of the round table group. It felt odd to gather without Merlin there, but the seven of them gathered anyway, in a small chamber that Arthur liked using for these meetings when it was possible.

He hadn't shared this room or the new round table inside of it with any of the advisers or other knights. For now, he was content with this group of close friends. Of course, his closest friend was absent from the proceedings today, but that was part of the reason for calling a meeting in the first place.

"Ten days, right?" Gwaine said as they all settled in to talk. "Until Merlin's back?"

Arthur nodded, and couldn't help the slight smile that fell onto his face at the thought. "Exactly. Which is why I brought all of you here – I'm… concerned, to say the least, as to why nothing's happened."

The room was silent for a moment as they processed this, and then Percival spoke, his voice slow and calculating. "What exactly to you mean?"

"Merlin has been gone for a while now, and yet nobody's tried to harm Camelot in his absence. What could that mean?"

Gwen spoke next. Her voice was hesitant, but she seemed to have given the question at least a bit of thought. "Well… when Merlin was first attacked, that man had the opportunity to hurt you, Arthur. He could have killed Merlin on the spot, and then taken out the entire nobility of Camelot. We would have been undefended."

The thought made the entire room shift, nervous. Gwen continued. "I think that the sorcerer's goal wasn't _Camelot_. I think his goal was _Merlin."_

Gaius snapped his eyes to Gwen, his eyes narrowed. "And what do you think that means, exactly?"

Gwen looked anxious at all of the eyes on her, but she spoke again. "You remember what that man said about being an admirer of Emrys. I don't think that Merlin being gone from Camelot has to do with Camelot. I think it has to do with that man wanting Emrys on his side."

"On his side for what, though?" Elyan broke in, looking impressed at his sister's reasoning.

At this, Guinevere shrugged.

"On his side for taking over Camelot," Arthur muttered. When the group looked skeptical, he rushed to explain himself, his face drawn and tired. "Think about it – that man wants Merlin- wants _Emrys_ – for something. All I can think of is power. And what does he want power _over_? The world might be a good guess. And what a better place to start than Camelot?"

"But… Arthur… think about what Gwen said," Gaius said slowly. "Why wouldn't he have killed you and Merlin already, and have been done with it?"

"Because Camelot means nothing unless he can sustain it. It means nothing unless he has Emrys," Arthur said quickly, brain working fast to fit the pieces together. "He _wants_ Camelot, but he wants Merlin more. I think it's an honor thing, maybe. Everyone speaks about Emrys like a god, or at least like a king. If this sorcerer could have validation from Emrys, then his claim to Camelot or to… to… power in general, I suppose, could be legitimized."

Everyone thought that over. It painted a grim picture, but suddenly Gwaine chuckled, startling the entire group.

"What could possibly be funny?" Leon asked the knight.

"It's just… if that's all true, then there's no way the sorcerer is going to win." The room was silent, and Gwaine pressed on, waiting for them all to catch up with the good news. "That sorcerer wants Merlin to join forces with him. Do any of you think that's _really_ going to happen?"

Percival and Elyan grinned, and Leon followed suit. "I guess not," Elyan said, his smile growing wider. Gwen and Gaius caught each other's eyes and their expressions lit up.

"Merlin would never join with anyone else, which means Camelot is safe. If… if you're right, Arthur," Gaius said, glancing at the young king. Arthur's face had not taken on the excited expression of the rest of the group.

"Maybe. _Maybe_ we'll only be attacked if Merlin joins their side. And if that's the case, then we're safe, at least from that threat." Arthur's eyebrows were drawn in.

"What's wrong?" Gwen said anxiously. "You don't actually think there's a chance Merlin would betray you?"

Arthur scoffed. "Of course not. But don't you see? That's the problem."

Gaius was the first one to catch on to what Arthur meant. "And if Merlin won't help the sorcerer, then he's of no further use to him." The physician looked around the room, examining each face, all of which were looking at him, waiting for the answers. "If Merlin doesn't join him, there's a chance the sorcerer will try to rid the world of Emrys once and for all."

* * *

**Author's Note: What do you think of their speculations? **


	21. Chapter 21

**Author's Note: Please enjoy!**

* * *

Two months had seemed a long time back before Merlin had departed Camelot, but the last 24 hours were the slowest yet. He had spent the last several days on his own, practicing with a sword and going on walks around the woods. With only his horse for company, Merlin was more than anxious for the dawn of the next day, when he would finally be able to step back across the border and in to Camelot once more.

"Just a few more hours," he whispered to the horse, patting his nose complacently. He glanced at his water skin and noted it was almost empty. He walked forward and scooped it up, heading through the trees to the river a mere 50 yards away. He hadn't wanted to set up camp too close to its shores, in case the water lapped up over the edge and soaked his bag, which contained the clothing and supplies he had needed for his months away from home.

He had been using magic to assist in hunting, since no matter how hard he tried, he was never good enough with a bow to catch more than a few slow-moving critters in the forest. It made him feel slightly guilty to use his magic in this way, as if combating a natural force against natural creatures would upset the balance of things. But he was only taking what he needed to survive, and since he could be as accurate as he wanted with magic, he knew he was bringing no pain to the animals he killed for his own sustenance.

The river was cool and refreshing, and Merlin knelt by the bank and splashed some water on his face before leaning over to fill the water skin. He was humming to himself lightly, which was perhaps why he didn't hear the sound of footsteps coming up behind him until it was too late.

"Hello, Emrys," a voice said. Merlin tried to throw out his magic to defend himself, but the stranger's approach had been too sudden and stealthy. He had no time to react as he felt the man behind him hit him over the head with the blunt edge of a sword. Darkness took him instantly.

* * *

"It's today!" Gwen's voice said as she sashayed into Gaius's chambers, with Arthur following behind. She was coming to check on one of the palace kitchen maids who had fallen ill the day previous, and Arthur decided to tag along, loving any chance to spend with his wife and not with the various nobles and common folk he had to deal with every day as king.

Gaius smiled and looked up from the cot where he was examining the young girl, Emily. "Yes, indeed."

Arthur couldn't even pretend not to know what they were talking about – all week, he'd been growing more and more anxious for the arrival of this day. Today, Merlin was set to return to Camelot. According to what Merlin had told him, the spell that he and Kilgharrah had begun two months previous had been growing to eradicate the spell placed over Merlin and over the whole of Camelot. Today, it was set to be complete, finally knocking away the spell that "Harvey" had cast for good.

"How is she?" Arthur asked, staring at the pale face of Emily with concern. Although he had only met her once or twice himself, Gwen often spoke fondly of the young girl. She gave such good attention to the maids of the palace, perhaps because she so strongly remembered the days when she was among them.

"She will be perfectly alright. A common illness, coupled with exhaustion. She merely needs rest and water."

"Exhaustion?" Gwen said, a frown puckering up her smooth forehead.

"Apparently her mother just had another child, and the small boy won't stop shrieking at all hours of the night," Gaius said, smiling at the thought of such a nice family. "Has Merlin signaled you anything today?" he asked Arthur.

"No. Generally he sends a message at sunset, but I suppose today there will be no need of that. He'll be back here by dark, I'm sure."

Gaius chuckled. "If I know Merlin at all, he'll be back within the hour. I just know he's been waiting right at the edge of the kingdom's limits, ready to come home the second he was able."

Arthur smiled at the thought of seeing his friend again. As he and his wife took their leave of Gaius and the sleeping Emily, he could hardly keep himself from bouncing through the halls in anticipation.

"Are you excited to see him?" Gwen asked knowingly.

Arthur attempted to keep his voice nonchalant as he shrugged. "I mean, sure. Yeah."

Gwen laughed, her voice delightfully free and happy. "I know you've missed him terribly. You've been moodier lately than I've seen you in a long while."

"Well, I've been worried."

"Yes, I know."

"About _Camelot_, Gwen. Not just about Merlin."

"I know that too," Gwen answered. "But I think we'll all feel much better once Merlin is with us again. One less thing to worry about, yes?"

Arthur nodded in agreement. One less thing, indeed.

But as the day wore on, his worry did increase. He still had Lords Samuel and Phineas on his back about Merlin and magic in general, and he was increasingly anxious about the reason behind the lack of attack on Camelot. And beyond that, Gaius was right – Merlin would have been set to show up as soon as humanly possible once the curse was lifted. And if that was the case… where was he?

Morning turned to afternoon which turned to evening, yet no matter how many excuses Arthur made to stroll out to the courtyard, hoping to catch a glimpse of Merlin's return, he could see no sign of the young warlock.

As sunset lit the skies of Camelot, Arthur took out the stone, waiting anxiously for Merlin's signal. He waited, hoping for the tell-tale flash of blue which would tell him not to worry, that he'd just been held up an extra day, and that he'd be back the next morning, no worse for wear.

He went to bed that night beside an anxious Guinevere, the stone gripped in his hand. There was no message, and no Merlin.

* * *

**Author's Note: Hit me with it. I wanna know what you think!**


	22. Chapter 22

**Author's Note: Here we go!**

* * *

Merlin woke to a dark space. His head was throbbing and he couldn't quite remember where he was, or rather, how he'd gotten there. After a few minutes, staring up into inky darkness, the memory came back to him – that voice, getting hit over the head… somebody had taken him.

How long had he been here? Merlin sat up quickly, his heart pounding fast. As he tried to get to his feet, a hand on his shoulder stopped him. Merlin whirled around, and a face swam out of the darkness towards him. It was a woman, with dark hair and skin. She brushed a hand through Merlin's hair, and he flinched back.

"Who are you? Where am I? Who took me? How long have I been here?" Merlin's voice sounded sharp and panicked. The girl smiled kindly but did not respond for a long moment, staring at Merlin in reverent curiosity for a long moment. Then, she stood, leaving Merlin on the ground, kneeling uncertainly.

"Welcome, Emrys. I shall tell him you are awake."

"Tell him? Tell _who_?" Merlin croaked, panicked. He needed to get his bearings. He needed to find out who these people were. Was he a prisoner? Or… that woman _had_ said Emrys. Was it possible that…

The woman had left the room, and hardly a minute later someone else entered it. This time, it was a man with tanned skin and a strange color of eyes, so light grey as to almost be colorless. He looked solemn as he entered, and then a curtain of vines fell over the doorway, pushing the room into near blackness.

"Emrys," the man said, bowing his head. Merlin wasn't entirely sure, but he took a guess as to the man's identity.

"Tabor," he said with a false smile of greeting, nodding his head in return. As he stood up, he noted with satisfaction that he had been right – the man in question flinched back in surprise.

"How did you – " but then he paused. "Ah. My brothers in the druid camp have ousted me."

"What do you want with me?" Merlin asked bluntly.

Tabor sighed, and sunk down to the floor gracefully, nodding at Merlin to do the same. With some measure of hesitation, Merlin sat back down. He knew he needed to get back to Camelot, but he had no way of knowing how many people were around, and he was also curious about Tabor. The more he knew about this man, the more he could defend against his plans.

"It is nice to see you once more, Emrys," Tabor said quietly. Merlin glared.

"I can't say the same of you, given that the last time we met, you were speaking through the body of a man you'd just killed."

Tabor actually looked a bit chagrined. "An unfortunate but necessary price to pay. I must say I am surprised at you, Emrys. I thought you would come looking for me once you left Camelot."

"I want nothing to do with you other than to assure myself that you're not going to be coming around my home again anytime soon," Merlin said shortly. Tabor looked very disappointed at this.

"I knew, of course, that you were powerful enough to combat my banishment spell. Even with the combined forces of all my people driving the force of the spell, you only needed two months to eradicate the threat."

"And how many people are you?" Merlin asked, not so subtly hoping for more information.

Tabor smiled but then spoke on, ignoring the question. "But as I waited for you to find me, I realized you had no intention. I apologize for the… unconventional way in which you were brought here, but it had become clear to us that you weren't coming of your own accord. And this is where you need to be."

Merlin looked around the darkened space. His eyes had adjusted enough to identify it as a cave of some sort. The room they were in seemed to be only one segment of a much larger network. There were several dark spots of tunnels leading further into the labyrinth. "And why do I need to be here, exactly?" Merlin asked.

"You belong with us," Tabor said, with such certainty that for a moment Merlin could think of nothing to say.

"No," he finally spoke. "No, I don't. I could never belong with people who would threaten innocent lives for no reason."

"I understand that you have a… connection with young Arthur Pendragon. But don't worry. We can fix that."

"Stop," Merlin said, jumping to his feet. "I'm going back to Camelot. I'm leaving, _right_ now."

Tabor just shook his head, the same look of disappointment still on his face. "I can't let you do that." He snapped his fingers, and two very large men came up from an adjacent room, standing on either side of Merlin before he could react. Merlin tried to push his magic outward to ward them off, but felt the magic inside him stifle and then stop short.

"What's going on?" he asked, trying to keep the fear out of his voice. "Why can't I…"

"Use magic?" Tabor said, smiling and rising gently to his feet. He nodded his head at the two men in the room, and they each grabbed one of Merlin's arms. "The caves are protected against attack. It prevents… dissent among our people, although I can lift the protection on an individual basis if I see fit."

"I'm not _your people_," Merlin hissed, incensed. He struggled uselessly against the two large men as they began pulling him towards one of the deeper tunnels. "Where are you taking me?"

Tabor seemed truly sorry as he spoke. "We need to make you understand the truth, Emrys. And unfortunately you are not making that easy on us."

With Tabor's sympathetic face watching them go, Merlin was pulled deeper into darkness, to a fate he was not so excited to face. All he could think about was Camelot, and the friends he had there, who would be wondering and worrying about his current whereabouts.

_Don't come after me, Arthur,_ Merlin begged silently. _It's not worth getting yourself killed._

* * *

**Author's Note: So... sorry! No Arthur and Merlin reunion just yet!**_  
_


	23. Chapter 23

**Author's Note: So... I know this story is kind of slow. Remember the chapter in "Connected" when the reveal finally happened? Well... let's just say another... similarly huge moment is coming up pretty quick in this story. In two or three chapters. Hold on to your hats, folks!**

* * *

Arthur called a round table meeting the next morning, intent on getting everyone on board for immediate action.

"We need to go after him. I'll lead a search party, and anyone else who wants to go – I'm taking volunteers only, as this could be dangerous, and – "

"Arthur," Gaius interrupted harshly. "You need to sit down."

The young king had been too busy pacing anxiously around the room to stand still at all, but at Gaius's tone, he stopped, turning to face the physician. "We haven't got_ time_ for sitting around, Gaius. Merlin is _missing_, haven't you noticed? He was supposed to be here yesterday, and – "

Arthur stopped talking abruptly, noticing the other people in the room. The knights, Gaius, and even Gwen, were all looking at one another with uneasy and somewhat awkward expressions on their faces.

"_What_?" Arthur snapped.

Gwaine looked around at everyone, waiting for someone else to speak. When no one did, he took a deep breath, staring straight at Arthur as he did so. "We're all worried about him, too, Arthur. But… I guess we all just think that maybe we should give him a day or two. You know Merlin. He can take care of himself. And if you go out there and get yourself into trouble…"

Arthur's face turned red. "Get myself into trouble, huh? And you all feel this way?" he looked around the room, trying to find support, but was met with silence. "And if he's out there? In danger, right now. I won't sit here and do nothing."

"One day," Gaius said, his voice soft but commanding. "Please, Arthur. Think of your other responsibilities. Merlin is important, but he's not all you have to care about."

Arthur wanted to be livid. He wanted to tell them they were all being stupid and insensitive, but as he met Gwen's eye, he felt the tension drain out of him. Maybe he was overreacting a bit. Merlin had never been known for being punctual, after all. It was also possible that something had gone wrong and delayed him, but that he was perfectly fine now, and on his way back to Camelot at that moment. Wearily, he sunk into his chair around the table. He spoke, keeping his gaze locked on his wife as he did so. "One day, and then I'm going after him."

Just the thought of waiting that long was making his blood boil with anxious energy.

* * *

Merlin had lost track of the hours. When Tabor's cronies had first pushed him in to this tiny dark chamber, his resolve had been firm. These caves might have blocks against magic, but he was _Emrys_, damn it. He was strong enough to bypass anything these men could throw at him.

And for a while, it had almost worked. It took more effort than he had ever exerted before in his life, but he had been able to make his magic come out to play.

He had muttered an incantation and felt the two large men fly backwards, hitting the walls of the cave. They got to their feet, dazed, as Merlin darted forward, trying to get through them and towards the entrance. The men were too quick for him, however. They had his arms pinned to his side before Merlin could make it to the door.

"That's impossible," one of them hissed, his voice low and gravelly. "You cannot do magic here unless Tabor has allowed it!"

"Apparently, I'm an exception," Merlin said, choosing not to mention the fact that the spell he had just performed had drained him to the point of near collapse. He was powerful, yes, but the combined efforts of several sorcerers had obviously been set to work on this place over a long period of time.

The two men shared an anxious glance, but then one of them backed away, his eyes glowing gold. "Well, we'll see about that." He shot a blast of magic to Merlin, who blocked it with extreme effort.

"What, _you're_ not blocked from using magic in here?" he demanded angrily, his breath coming in shallow pants.

"Not at the moment, no," the other man replied, muttering his own spell and sending it Merlin's way. He wasn't quick enough to block it this time, and felt the magic slam into him, knocking the wind from him and causing him to fall backward to the compact dirt of the cave's floor.

As Merlin looked up, breathing heavily, he saw three more men and two women come into the room, all of them dressed in identical black clothing, with expressions of grim determination in their flashing golden eyes. He felt for his magic, grimacing as the mere effort of locating the energy inside of him nearly made his knees buckle. Whatever they had done to him, it was making magic a near impossibility at this point.

Merlin prepared himself for their onslaught, wondering how they thought this sort of behavior would ever turn him to their side.

* * *

"Enough waiting," Arthur said the next morning, jogging into the training grounds where Gwaine, Leon, Percival and Elyan were gathered. "Who's coming with me?"

The four men shared glances and then looked at the king, all nodding their support.

"Let's go," Gwaine said, and the five men stomped off towards the stables to find horses. They met Guinevere near the stables. She took one look at the expressions on their faces and understood instantly.

For a moment, her forehead puckered and she opened her mouth like she wanted to argue. Then, she just rushed forward and kissed Arthur on the cheek. "Bring him back to us, but be safe."

Arthur promised his wife that he would return, feeling a ball of ice form in his stomach. His resolve was firm – he _would _be going after Merlin. It didn't make leaving Camelot, and Gwen, more specifically, behind any easier.

"Come on, no time to waste," he said to the others. They went to their horses and saddled them, too pressed for time to call for a stable boy.

_Please, Merlin,_ Arthur thought to himself. _Just hold on. We're on our way._ He tried not to dwell on the fact that he had virtually no idea where to start.

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you!**


	24. Chapter 24

**Author's Note: I am _so excited_ to see what you guys think of the big shocker coming up in a few chapters... ;)**

* * *

Hours passed before Tabor finally entered the room. Merlin at this point was crouched in the corner, his arms up as a protective cover over his face. Not that it was doing much good, of course. Whatever spells the men and women were doing, they were painful. It was like getting hit in sharp bursts by burning hot iron, and then suddenly being doused in water so cold it knocked all of his breath away. And it was endless. They were talking in between spells, but the words had become meaningless to Merlin.

When Tabor entered and raised a hand, Merlin experienced the first moment of relief in what felt like days, even though he knew it couldn't be more than three or four hours since he had woken up here.

"You're a sick person," Merlin gasped. "You think this will make me _join_ you?" his voice was livid.

Tabor looked very conflicted for a moment as he watched Merlin gasp for breath. "Emrys… this wasn't supposed to go like this."

"Oh really? And how was it supposed to go?"

"You were supposed to seek us out the minute you left Camelot," Tabor replied.

"The minute you _forced_ me out of Camelot, you mean."

"And when that didn't work," Tabor continued as if Merlin hadn't spoken, "I thought perhaps you needed a bit of…."

"Torture," Merlin supplied helpfully.

"Coercion," Tabor said, but his lips twisted uncomfortably at the pained position Merlin was still folded into. "But now I see this goes deeper than that."

"What do you mean?" Merlin grumbled.

"Your connection to Arthur is too strong to turn you to our side."

"That's true," Merlin said. "But I can't see any way you can change that. After all, if you kill him there's even _less_ of a chance I'd join you."

Tabor nodded thoughtfully, his hand coming up to rest under his chin. The other people in the room had fallen into a respectful line behind their leader, heads bowed and silent. "No, no, of course we won't kill him," he said softly.

"Really?" Merlin said, eyebrows raised.

"No, you must do that, of course."

Merlin felt laughter burst out of him without his permission. Not for the first time, it occurred to Merlin that Tabor might be more than a little mentally unbalanced. "You think you can get _me_ to kill the king."

Tabor looked at him with piercing eyes. "This isn't about taking over Camelot, Emrys. At least, not entirely. We only want Camelot if you will lead us to it."

"And for the hundredth time, that is _not_ going to happen."

"Not unless you see that you've been wrong about King Arthur. He is just as his father before him was – he hates magic, and hatred like that does not go away."

Merlin sighed. He was aching and cold from the brutal attacks, and he was cranky about still being in this stupid middle-of-nowhere-cave when he _should_ have been back in Camelot with his friends. "King Arthur has changed. If you really want magic to prosper once more, all you have to do is wait. Arthur is bringing back magic."

"He has a certain fondness for _you_," Tabor said sharply. "But that is all it is. He's made you an exception. But if you aren't there anymore… then the young Pendragon will fall right back into old ways."

"So… what, you're going to kill me, then?"

Tabor laughed, staring at him in bemusement. "Oh, of course not! Don't be ridiculous!" He paused so that his next words would hold weight. "We're just going to make your precious Arthur _believe_ we have."

"And what's that going to do?" Merlin felt his heart pound with fear. If he knew anything about Arthur, he knew that the young king was not going to take kindly to his being murdered. If that insolent, prat-ish, fool started a war over him, Merlin would never forgive him.

"You may be a sorcerer, but to him you are first and foremost a friend. Once he learns that magic has taken you, you will see his true colors. He will turn against magic and all magic-users, just as his father did."

Tabor and all of his followers seemed satisfied with these words. They looked at one another, breaking their stony stillness for the first time to smile in approval at their leader. Merlin seemed to be the only one to sense a problem with all of this.

"You'd have to keep me for a long time for that plan to work. Otherwise, Arthur won't have time to… _revert _back into old ways, or whatever it is you think he'll do." Tabor's plan was making less and less sense to Merlin as the sorcerer talked. What was the point of all this? Was the concept of 'Emrys' really more important to these people than the actual reality of power?

Tabor shrugged. "We are playing a bit of a long game, yes. But luckily our patience won't be tested all that much. Clara!" he barked suddenly. One of the women standing in the line behind him came forward.

"You know your instructions," Tabor said to her solemnly. "I know we said this was only if all else fails, but the young Emrys seems unwilling to assist us unless we follow through with the plan."

Clara nodded, her lip quivering slightly in what Merlin took to be fear.

"Then, my child, I will see you soon," Tabor said. He leaned over and kissed her on the forehead, and then Clara darted out of the chamber, presumably towards the cave entrance.

"What is she going to do?" Merlin demanded.

"She's headed for Camelot," Tabor said simply. Merlin opened his mouth to ask why, but the rest of the people in the room had stepped forward quite suddenly to join hands with one another. Standing in a long line, they began filing out of the room, connected together like a serpent. Merlin watched them go, and after a few moments of silence, he followed, hesitant. They walked through the caves until they reached a chamber that was lighter than the others, because –

The way out! Merlin noticed it just as the group of sorcerers crossed to stand in front of the entrance. With a solemn air, Tabor glanced at his compatriots, and they formed a circle, their hands still linked. Without any sort of discernible cue, they began to chant. Merlin weighed the possibility of getting past them and back outside, but knew without his magic that he was fairly hopeless. He'd need to focus on fighting against the protections put over the cave, first. Then, he might be able to make an escape using sorcery.

But how long would that take? How long before Arthur would think him a lost cause?

The sorcerers chanted for a long time, their words unfamiliar to Merlin. As they finished, a blue-white light seemed to emanate out of the group, washing along all of the walls until the entire cave seemed encased with it from the inside. Slowly, the sorcerers let their arms fall.

"Well," Tabor said, turning back to Merlin. "Now we wait."

"What did you do? What was that magic?" Merlin asked.

Tabor said nothing for a long time. Finally he spoke, with the reverent tone that Merlin hated when it was spoken towards him. "You will understand very soon. And then? Then you will see the truth about Arthur Pendragon."

* * *

**Author's Note: Any guesses as to what Tabor and the others did? What their plan is?**


	25. Chapter 25

**Author's Note: Thanks for your continued support!**

* * *

Arthur and the others searched for Merlin for three full days and nights. The king would have been all too content to continue the search for as long as it took, but the others pointed out that his absence from Camelot could mean real danger for the people there.

It caused him real pain to head back in the direction of Camelot, but he was by no means giving up on Merlin. His friend wasn't even a week late, yet. No reason to lose hope. All he was doing was heading back for a day or two – to reassure his wife, appease the annoying concerns of Lord Samuel and his entourage… and then he'd be back out here, searching for Merlin.

In the meantime, the rest of the roundtable knights were going to keep up the search, promising to send someone back to Camelot with any news whatsoever.

Gwen and Gaius were both relieved and happy to see him, of course, but both of their faces fell when they saw that Merlin was not with him. Dealing with Samuel was more taxing than usual, however, given that making this insidious and cruel man happy was the last thing on his to-do list.

"I seem to understand that the sorcerer was due back a few days past?" Samuel remarked snidely at a council meeting. "Am I to take it that your little disappearance – what did you call it? A patrol? – was in fact your attempt to locate your missing sorcerer friend?"

Arthur bit the inside of his cheek for a moment to avoid yelling at the lord. "I was gone for three days, Lord Samuel. I still have people out searching for Merlin, but I decided that my place was here."

"You decided?" Samuel said sharply. "You are our king. Being here and serving Camelot is not a choice for you to make. It's an obligation. A responsibility."

"That sounds an awful lot like scolding to me," Arthur retorted. "I'd remind you to mind your place, Lord Samuel."

The older man looked startled for a moment but then bowed slightly, his face turning to falsely apologetic. "I am sorry, your majesty. I merely meant to express my concern… You know I want what is best for you and for Camelot."

It took a conscious effort on Arthur's part to avoid rolling his eyes.

After dealing with Lord Samuel and the others, he went back to his chambers to sit with Gwen. Pulling the enchanted stone out of his pocket, he sent a signal Merlin's way.

Gwen saw the stone glow a golden red and looked at her husband, surprised. "Why are you sending him the distress signal?"

Arthur sighed. "If by some chance Merlin's out there somewhere right now, and he's not… I don't know, captured, or injured, or lost, then perhaps if he thinks Camelot's in danger he'll hurry it up and come home."

Gwen smiled at Arthur and leaned forward to kiss him. "He'd be home if he had a choice, Arthur."

The king sighed, leaning in to his wife's embrace gratefully. "I know. That's what terrifies me."

* * *

Merlin had lost track of how long they'd been in the caves. It was hard to tell the time of day when he couldn't see the sun, and the sorcerers were making sure to keep him well back into the bowels of their cave system. He was left alone most of the time, except for the man who brought him food and water, and Tabor.

Tabor would come in every few hours and sit down, talking to him about Camelot's glorious future with Emrys ruling the world of magic. Merlin would sit silently, listening with scorn to Tabor's words. If these conversations taught him anything, it was that this man was seriously deranged. A very small part of Merlin's mind even felt sorry for him – he had such a single-minded determination about everything. He was so certain he was right. In his own twisted way, he thought he was doing something good, here.

Although it was difficult to know for sure, Merlin suspected he'd been in the caves for upwards of four days when suddenly, Tabor walked into the room where Merlin was sitting with a bright smile on his face.

"Today is the day, Emrys," he said, bowing his head with the same reverence he always displayed to Merlin.

"The day for what?" Merlin croaked. His voice was almost inaudible from disuse, but Tabor seemed to glean the meaning.

"Today you shall go back to Camelot."

Merlin started upwards, shocked. "What?"

"It is time for you to see the light, Emrys."

Merlin stood from his spot crouched near the wall of the cave. He was hesitant to believe anything this man said, but thus far what Tabor had said to him had proven to be true, no matter how wrong it was. "Why would you let me go back?" he said cautiously. "I thought you were trying to make Arthur believe I was dead."

"And that's what we have done."

"It's been a handful of days. At best, he's a little concerned as to why I'm not home yet. There's no way they've given up on me!" Merlin said angrily. He wondered why he was arguing – if Tabor was really going to let him go, should he just get out of here and run home?

"All will go as we've planned it, Emrys," was all Tabor said. Merlin took a few cautious steps forward, and when nobody moved to stop him, he advanced quickly through the caves to the entrance.

"You're… really letting me go," he said to the group that was congregated there.

"We are indeed," Tabor said, having followed him to the low over-hang that marked the entrance. "The great castle of Camelot is not far off, now. Less than a day's ride. We've prepared you a horse and food for the road."

"Why?" Merlin said. He felt like this question was coming out of him more and more often.

"You are our friend, Emrys. It is why we have stayed here with you in these caves, separate from the rest of the world for these past few days. These long days that have changed everything." The look in Tabor's eyes worried Merlin. He looked sad, with a depth that surprised and concerned Merlin to no end.

"Changed everything?" he said hesitantly. He received no answer, and before he knew it he was being escorted out of the caves and to a waiting horse. As he mounted and began his incredulous way back towards Camelot, he heard Tabor's voice carry one last message on the wind of his departure:

"You will see Arthur for who he is, now. You will see that his hatred of magic runs just as deep as his father's, and you will join us once and for all."

* * *

**Author's Note: These long days that have changed everything... Oh my... :)**


	26. Chapter 26

**Author's Note: Not to be cryptic, but… there's a clue hidden in this chapter as to what's going on. Can you find it? Thanks so much for reading! Please leave a review. :)**

* * *

The round table knights returned the next day, with no new sightings of Merlin. Arthur felt his heart clench painfully when Gwaine had given him the news, but tried as hard as he could not to let it show on his face.

"Well then, we keep looking," he said gruffly. Nobody responded for a moment, and Arthur knew they were all thinking the worst. "We keep looking until we find him," he insisted. Slowly, his friends nodded, dispersing to assemble further search parties.

The days had been getting more and more stressful as they passed. Merlin had been set to arrive six days earlier, and there was still no sign of him, and no signal from the stones. On the seventh day, while Arthur was going about a council meeting with dreary half-attention, a woman arrived in Camelot bearing news.

Leon had found her near the stables, shaking, covered in dirt and somebody else's blood, and insisting that she have audience with the king immediately. She stumbled into the throne room, shaking, and introduced herself as Clara.

"What's happened to you, Clara?" Arthur asked gently. He stood from his seat and with a wave of his hand, dismissed the other advisers. With some annoyance, Arthur observed that Lords Phineas and Samuel were staying.

"N-not to me, your majesty," Clara said shakily. The poor girl seemed scared out of her wits, and Arthur tried to force the feeling of panic away. "It… it was _them! _Sorcerers!"

Arthur froze, cursing the fact that Samuel was here to hear this. "Sorcerers did this to you?" Arthur asked uncertainly.

"They killed him!" she shrieked suddenly. She stood and took a few unsteady paces further into the room, and then collapsed forward. A bewildered Lord Phineas caught her just in time and lowered her to the floor, remaining crouched over her for a moment while she regained her bearings.

"They killed someone?" Arthur asked Clara, trying to keep his voice calming. "And they hurt you?"

"They – they… I tried to stop them, but there were too many. I… I always thought the druids were peaceful, but…"

"Hold on," Arthur said, allowing incredulity to creep into his voice. "The _druids_ did this. The druids killed someone?"

"They killed…" Clara gasped for air for a moment. "I saw the whole thing. He wasn't even provoking them. Just… just trying to back his way out, and then – " she broke off with a dramatic sob.

"What happened, exactly?" Arthur said. His patience was waning. If the druids were suddenly killing people, something wasn't right here, at all. If only Merlin were here to help him figure this out…

"They killed your friend, sire," Clara said slowly, eyes downcast. "I recognized him from when he used to visit Queen Guinevere in the lower town… your friend, sire," she repeated.

Arthur felt his knees grow weak and fought to keep his voice steady. "Who, Clara? Who did they kill?"

"The… the sorcerer, Your Majesty. They killed Merlin."

* * *

Arthur refused to believe until he had physical proof. Trying not to frighten the poor girl who had brought the news, he assembled the round table knights hastily, and asked Clara where exactly she had seen this occur.

Within the hour, Arthur, Gwaine, Leon, Percival, and Elyan were riding out of Camelot with Clara's directions in their minds.

Lord Samuel had tried to insist that running after the shrieking of a hysterical female was not a very kingly thing to do, but surprisingly, Phineas had argued, saying that perhaps it was time for the king to get his worry for Merlin out of his system once and for all.

Arthur didn't have time to ponder this strange act on Phineas's part, as his mind was too busy racing ahead. What would he do if it were true? He felt his stomach roll at the thought. _Just wait_, he told himself for the hundredth time. _Just wait and see._

And he did. The five men rode into a clearing just as Clara had described, and what they saw brought them up short. There was a misty rain falling out of an overcast sky, but the picture in front of them was fairly clear.

There had obviously been some sort of a struggle here. Tree branches were broken, scorch marks covered the ground, and there were ripped up bits of clothing and a canvas bag spread over the pine needles resting on the dirt…

"That's Merlin's horse," Elyan said, his voice rough. Sure enough, Camelot's steed was tethered to a nearby tree. Leon rushed forward to see if the animal was harmed, while Arthur looked around in disbelief.

"These are his things," he said quietly, kneeling beside a large piece of the bag. Hesitantly, he reached his hand inside the pocket, and in a moment he found what he had been hoping he wouldn't.

Squeezing his eyes shut in despair, he pulled out Merlin's stone, feeling its weight in his hand. "He… he wouldn't have left this," he choked.

"_Damn _it!" Gwaine yelled abruptly, startling everyone in the clearing. "This isn't fair! He _can't_ be!"

Leon stepped away from the horse and went to comfort his friend, while Percival placed a gentle hand on Elyan's shoulder. Instinctively, the four knights knew to say nothing to Arthur. What could any of them possibly say to him, now? Elyan spoke quietly to Percival. Gwaine and Leon heard, but Arthur had taken a few steps away from the others, looking at the stone in his hand as if willing it to give him answers.

"Didn't we search this clearing?" Elyan said softly. "I could have sworn we were here before, and there was nothing.."

Percival looked around. "I don't know. It's possible," he said, trying to see if this clearing looked familiar to him. In any case, this evidence was fairly conclusive.

After a few moments of tense silence, the king spoke, his voice a deadly calm. "Clara said they took the body with them, and she doesn't know where. We must return to Camelot. There's nothing more to do here."

* * *

Merlin pushed the horse hard, riding all day long until he could see the castle of Camelot in the distance. Finally, he gave the poor mare a second to rest, sliding off of his mount and collapsing near a small creek, grateful for the cool and running water. The weather around him was beautiful. He was returning home on a cloudless day, with a warm, gentle sun hovering over the proceedings.

He grinned, seeing the familiar spires of the castle around him. He didn't care what Tabor had said. He'd been gone for only a week longer than he said he would be. He was sure they were getting anxious – he could just picture the look of relief on Gaius's face, and could almost hear Arthur glaring at him for making him worry.

There was no way Tabor's plan had worked, though. Arthur wouldn't suddenly turn his back on magic just because Merlin was a few days late. That was insane. Hopping back onto his horse, he began the final trot down the hill to the castle.

It was good to finally be home.

* * *

**Author's Note: Thanks!**


	27. Chapter 27

**Author's Note: A few of you guessed this - congrats! I have had this twist planned since before I posted the very first chapter. I hope you enjoy! Please let me know what you think...**

* * *

_**ONE YEAR LATER**_

"Arthur?" Gwen's voice was quiet as she approached her husband. She knew that today was going to be hard on him, for more reason than one. The king, standing in his chambers and looking out of the window over the view below, turned slowly to face his wife.

"Hello, my beautiful wife," he said, a brief smile passing over his features. This was a rare expression for him nowadays.

"Your daughter has been stirring up a fuss all night long," Gwen said, handing the bundle in her arms to Arthur. In all of the sadness of the past year, little Zoe had brought a beacon of joy and hope into their lives.

"Have you been giving your mother trouble?" he asked the sleeping bundle with fondness in his voice. They had learned that Gwen was pregnant only a month after learning of Merlin's death. Those had been confusing times for Arthur – the joy at impending fatherhood mixed with the terrible twist in his gut when he realized that his child would never know Merlin.

"Arthur…" Gwen said uneasily when she watched a shadow fall over her husband's face. "Listen, about today – "

"I have made up my mind, Guinevere," Arthur said, keeping his voice low so as not to startle Zoe. His tone was hard, however.

"I understand that, Arthur, but – "

"There is no 'but' here, Gwen. That man is a sorcerer. He is to be punished for his crimes. You know that's the law in Camelot." With an air of finality, he passed his daughter back to Guinevere, who took her gently, staring at Arthur in concern.

Learning of Merlin's death had caused an instantaneous and apparently irreversible change in the young king. He hadn't left his chambers for days, refusing the company of everyone but Gwen and Gaius, both of whom sat with him as he fell deeper into despair, wondering what the hell the point was of being the stupid "Once and Future King" of Camelot, if Merlin wasn't there by his side.

He had also done quite the reversal on his opinions on magic. While he would never be the tyrant that his father had been concerning sorcerers, he had decided to go back on his former decision to repeal the ban on magic in Camelot. This decision had been met with alarm from Gwen and a deep hurt from Gaius, but he had explained his reasoning to them as best as he could.

"Magic took Merlin. Magic might not be inherently evil, but it's turned too many good men into bad ones, and we've all suffered too many losses. I can't let that reign freely in my land."

"Merlin _was_ magic, Arthur," Gaius had said to him on this occasion. "It was who he was."

"Merlin was a loyal friend of Camelot. His magic wasn't the only thing about him that made him that way. Besides, if it weren't for sorcery, he'd still be alive. I always believed the druids to be creatures of peace, but they're the reason that Merlin is dead. My mind is made up."

There had been a lot of sulking, a lot of avoiding the topic, but when Gwen had informed him of her pregnancy, he had known that it was time to step it up. He tried to push Merlin from his mind as best as he could to be there for his wife, but it was a near impossible task.

Even now, a year later, the first thing he thought of when he awoke in the morning was that his best friend was no longer alive.

And today. Today was the anniversary of his learning that news. It was also to be the day of a sorcerer's execution.

* * *

Merlin brought his horse through the gates and into the courtyard with a mounting excitement. As he had passed through the lower town, several people had pointed and whispered in his direction. He wondered what that was about – although he had caused quite a stir by informing the public of his magic, most of that had been wearing down in the weeks before he'd left Camelot.

He saw his first familiar face as he walked into the courtyard, wondering in some bewilderment at the platform that had been erected there. It reminded him uncomfortably of the execution he had witnessed on his very first day in Camelot, and glanced up to the balcony where Uther had stood on that occasion, feeling the ghost of the dead king presiding over this scene.

"Leon!" Merlin called, spotting the knight across the way. He jumped off his horse and passed it to the stable boy on duty as Leon spun around at the sound of his voice. He was holding a sheaf of parchment in his hands but when his eyes found Merlin he dropped it, a look of intense surprise covering his face.

"Hey, Leon," Merlin said, taking a few steps towards the knight. Seemingly in immense shock, Leon stumbled forward towards him and placed his hands on either side of his shoulder.

"You – how – how can you be…" a smile was breaking out over Leon's face very slowly, as if the impossible reality in front of him was only just sinking in. "This is incredible, Merlin! How? How are you here?"

Merlin looked around, trying to figure out what the hell Leon was on about. "I'm… here because… because I rode here on a horse?"

"But – but… after all this time…" Leon said softly. Merlin opened his mouth to respond to that, still completely bewildered, but something else had suddenly occurred to the knight. He was still gripping Merlin's shoulders and he squeezed them suddenly tighter. "The king! We must tell Arthur immediately!"

And then he was off, waving impatiently over his shoulder. "Merlin, there's no time to waste," he said seriously. Merlin came after him, taking quick steps to keep up with the knight's long strides.

"Wait – Leon – what the hell is going on?" Merlin said. "What's wrong with Arthur? Is he alright?"

Leon spun around, looking shocked. He paced a few more steps back towards Merlin, his expression frozen in shock. "Alright? Merlin, of course he's not alright."

Merlin's eyes widened. He stepped past Leon and started jogging in the direction of the stairs leading up to Arthur's chambers, worry clenching his heart. "What's happened to him?" he asked Leon, who was jogging at his side.

"He's spent a year thinking you were _dead_, Merlin. How could he possibly be alright?"

* * *

**Author's Note: Well? Thoughts? :)**


	28. Chapter 28

**Author's Note: Thanks for all your continued support!**

* * *

Merlin felt his mind churn to a sudden stop. A year. A _year_? "That's impossible – Leon, I left Camelot only a few months ago. I'm a week late, not a year."

Leon stopped beside Merlin. They were halfway up a staircase on their way to Arthur's chambers. Both of their faces were slowly draining of blood. "You've been gone for a year, Merlin. A year and two months. You were due back in Camelot, and… and you never showed up."

Bits of the truth were starting to insert themselves into Merlin's head in no particular order. What had Tabor said? That Arthur would believe him to be dead. If he had really been gone from Camelot for an entire year, then Tabor was indeed right. But… that didn't mean Arthur would suddenly… what about that wooden platform out in the courtyard? "What's going on outside?" Merlin asked suddenly, startling Leon.

"What?"

"Outside. Is there an execution going on?"

Leon looked uncomfortable. "Yes."

"Who?"

"A man from the lower town," Leon said reluctantly.

"What's his crime?" Merlin said. His voice was shaking. He glanced up the staircase. He was mere yards away from Arthur's room. From seeing his friend again. He wanted that more than anything, but he needed to hear Leon's answer.

"Stealing fruit from the marketplace." Leon's voice was hesitant.

"That's not an offense worthy of execution, surely?"

And now Leon really wouldn't meet his eye. "Merlin, you need to go to Arthur. He needs you."

"Why is Arthur executing a thief?" Merlin said, his voice deadly and soft. Leon waited a long time before answering, but finally he did, his voice shaking slightly.

"He stole using magic."

At that, Merlin snapped his eyes up the stairs suddenly, and then he was running. _It's not true. Not Arthur. He wouldn't._

He burst through the doors to Arthur's chambers without knocking, and the door slammed against the wall loudly. Belatedly, he realized this probably wasn't the best way to make an entrance when the man inside this room believed him to be dead.

"Tell me you're not executing a man for _sorcery_, Arthur Pendragon!" Merlin yelled.

The king had been looking out of the window, his hands braced on the windowsill and his shoulders hunched. And the sound of the commotion behind him, he turned around, lightning fast. Then, he saw Merlin, and froze.

Merlin froze as well – the look on Arthur's face had removed all of his righteous anger in one fell swoop. He felt his stomach drop as he watched the emotions on the young king's face flash by in a confusing jumble. Disbelief, sadness, fear, a dawning realization followed by joy, more disbelief, and then suddenly anger. Unfreezing, he grasped his sword from its spot leaning against the wall and stepped forward, placing the blade under Merlin's throat.

"Woah!" Merlin said, taking a step back and raising his hands. "Arthur, what are you _doing_?"

"Who are you?" Arthur said shakily. His blade was pointed under Merlin's chin but it was trembling in his hand. "What are you doing here, imposter?"

"I'm not – Arthur, it's _me_!"

"No," Arthur said, voice shaking in anger. "He's dead. You're _dead_." With a frighteningly quick motion, he lunged forward. Merlin flinched back slightly but did not raise a hand in defense. He felt the cool tip of the blade nick the skin on his neck, and raised a clammy hand to feel a drop of blood drip out of the small cut.

"What the hell was that?" Arthur said softly, his voice gruff. His sword was still tight in his hands but he had pulled it slightly away from Merlin.

"Excuse me?" Merlin said breathlessly. His knees felt weak. "Shouldn't I be asking you that?"

"You didn't defend yourself. I could have killed you."

"I'm unarmed, and there was no way in hell I'm using magic against you, Arthur. Sort of goes against that whole destiny thing," Merlin said seriously. "Besides, you weren't going to kill me. Don't have the guts," he continued, allowing a brief smile to flit over his face.

Arthur stared at him for a second, and then the sword clattered quite suddenly to the ground, and he swept forward. The next thing Merlin knew, Arthur had pulled his fist back and swung it forward, hitting Merlin straight in the face. He fell backwards into the wall and held his nose. "Ow! Arthur, what the hell!"

"You – you – unbelievable – are you actually alive? Is this some sort of trick?" Arthur growled, pacing up and down the floors of his chambers distractedly.

"I'm alive, Arthur! Something's going on, and I don't know what it is, but I'm trying to figure it out. I just met Leon outside and he told me I was due back in Camelot a year ago. But I left here less than three months ago!" Merlin paused as Arthur turned to look at him. "Also, you just punched me in the face," he said indignantly.

"Sorry," Arthur said reflexively, but then shook his head, storming forward towards Merlin, who had managed to regain his footing while he was talking. "No, you know what? I'm _not_. How could you let me believe you were _dead_ for a _year_? We looked for you, Merlin! Do you have _any_ idea – "

Arthur looked ready to punch him again, so Merlin did the only thing he could think of and pulled the king into a hug. For a moment Arthur resisted, but then he hesitantly wrapped his arms around Merlin, seemingly waiting for the warlock to disappear into thin air. When he didn't, he held his friend a little tighter, disbelief still swirling in his mind.

"This is impossible," Arthur murmured into Merlin's shoulder. After several moments, he pulled back, but kept his hands on each of Merlin's shoulders. "_How_?"

"Tabor did something," Merlin said. He was muttering to himself, remembering what Tabor had said to him in the cave. "He made time pass faster, or… he froze time in the cave…"

"What are you talking about?" Arthur said, bewildered. He was still staring at Merlin as if afraid he was about to wake up from a dream. "Who the hell is Tabor?"

"Harvey. Harvey is Tabor. The sorcerer who started this whole mess in the _first _place." Thus far, Merlin had been pacing Arthur's chambers distractedly, trying to work out what had happened. Now, he turned to Arthur, his face serious. "Now. About this execution you have planned for today."

Merlin glared, and Arthur visibly gulped. Clearly, they had a lot to talk about.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well? How did I do?**


	29. Chapter 29

**Author's Note: A nice long chapter for y'all. So much bromance. My brain cannot handle it all! Thanks for reading and I hope you review!**

* * *

Leon saw Merlin run into Arthur's chambers and hesitated for a moment. He thought about going in there and trying to the diffuse the situation, but he knew instinctively that this was something that the two friends needed to sort out on their own. In lieu of running immediately to Arthur's chambers, he went and tracked down the other people that mattered the most to Merlin – Gwen, Gaius, and the other round table knights.

They were all rather incredulous when he announced that they all had to hurry to Arthur's chambers so they could see Merlin, but the hope bubbled up in each of them enough for them to fall into place behind Leon and rush towards the rooms where Merlin supposedly was, having apparently returned from the dead.

When Leon pushed the door open without knocking, all of the people behind him spilled into the room and saw Merlin and Arthur arguing at the top of their voices.

"You were _killed_ by the druids, Merlin!" Arthur said absurdly. "Clearly – "

"Actually, I _wasn't_, which you can clearly see! I'm right here! I'm not dead! The druids didn't do anything to me!"

"Then where have you been for the past year, huh? If the druids didn't keep you, who did?"

"I've _told_ you, you arrogant prat, it was Tabor!"

"Yes, a sorcerer!" Arthur retorted. "One who killed Lord Harvey, and then… what… trapped you in a cave for a year?"

"For a week," Merlin replied.

"You've been gone for – "

Gaius finally couldn't stand it anymore, and cleared his throat loudly, announcing his presence in the room.

"Gaius!" Merlin said happily, rushing forward to embrace the old physician. Merlin turned to hug each of the knights in turn, and then reached Gwen, who had tears running down her face.

"How are you alive?" she asked softly. The entire room went silent, waiting for the answer. Merlin looked around at all of them, and repeated what he had already told Arthur. Somehow, obviously, Tabor and his men had put a hold on time inside of the cave. He remembered the spell that they had done on his first day in the cave, and shuddered with the memory of that blue light enveloping the wall of the cave. Light a lightning bolt, he realized that what Tabor had promised had come true to some extent – he had said that Arthur would turn his back on magic without Merlin by his side, and now the king was planning on executing a sorcerer!

"All of you," Merlin said, looking around at the shocked faces of his friends. "I – I want to hear everything that's happened in the past year… I can't believe I've missed so much. But right now I need to talk to Arthur."

Percival, Leon, and Elyan all nodded and left silently. Gaius stared for a moment at Merlin and then shook his head. "I'm glad you're home, Merlin." He left, still looking bewildered at this extraordinary turn of events.

Gwaine came forward to clap him on the shoulder one more time. "It's a good thing you're back. Arthur's been a miserable mess without you, and I know that he and Gwen held off on naming a godfather for Zoe because they couldn't imagine it being anyone but you."

"What?" Merlin said, looking in shock between Gwen and Arthur.

"Hey, I offered to do the job," Gwaine said, shrugging.

"You wish," Arthur glared at Gwaine, but then smiled, nodding at Merlin. "She's just four months old, Merlin. The tiniest, most adorable little girl you've ever seen."

As Gwaine smiled and stepped out of the room, Gwen stepped forward and placed a hand on Merlin's shoulder. "We couldn't think of anyone better for godfather," she said. Her voice was shaking.

Merlin's eyes widened. "But – what? Really?" He swung around to look at Arthur, who nodded in agreement. For a minute, Merlin couldn't find words. In a flash, however, he remembered the platform that had been erected out in the courtyard. "You can't have a sorcerer for a godfather, can you?" he said coldly, staring straight at Arthur.

Gwen looked between the two of them for a moment and saw that they were locked in a staring battle. Silently, she left the room, still shaking from the sight of Merlin, alive and apparently unharmed. As she swung the door shut, she heard the two start up their argument again.

"Sorcery itself isn't entirely illegal, Merlin," Arthur said grumpily. "It's a secondary crime. Using magic to do something wrong is punishable. I'm not going to change that."

"Oh yes? Sounds very logical." Merlin said, glaring. His eyes flashed golden and the drapes on Arthur's windows ripped off of their hangings and fell to the floor.

"What was that for?" Arthur said. His voice was irritated. Merlin crossed his arms firmly.

"If stealing a couple of pieces of fruit from the marketplace is suddenly a crime worthy of death…" Merlin raised his hands and sent a candlestick that had been sitting on Arthur's desk flying across the room. "Then destroying the king's personal chambers must be as well."

He sent one of Arthur's pillows flying into the king's face and was just about to scatter the papers sitting on Arthur's desk when the king stormed forward. "Alright! Enough!"

"Well? Are you going to execute me?" Merlin seethed, taking a few steps forward so he was standing directly in front of Arthur. "Because if you don't want to be a total hypocrite, you probably should."

Arthur looked shocked at the expression on Merlin's face. "Look, Merlin…"

"You either kill me and that poor man, or you kill neither of us. That's the deal."

Arthur's expression would have been funny under any other circumstances. "I'm not going to _kill_ you, Merlin. Don't be ridiculous."

"Fine. Then let the thief go once he's served a just sentence for his crime. What does apple thievery go for in Arthur Pendragon's kingdom nowadays?" Merlin said wryly, staring at Arthur with raised eyebrows.

"A night spent in the dungeons and a warning for a first offense," Arthur muttered.

"Sounds reasonable to me," Merlin said, still struggling to keep his voice under control. Without another word, he turned to the door and made to leave. He had a lot he needed to discuss with Gaius and all of his other friends, and right now the sight of Arthur was making him angrier than he could stand. He glanced around at the partial destruction of the room, and just for good measure, pulled the tapestries from around Arthur's bed into a heap on the floor using a careless flick of his hand.

Arthur let him get to the door before he spoke. "Wait – Merlin, stop."

Merlin turned hesitantly. Arthur was looking at him very intently, with the expression of a man forced to grow up far too quickly. He seemed almost broken by the sight of his friend returned to him.

"What?" Merlin said, although he was finding it hard to keep his voice angry.

"I'm not going to execute him" he replied. "I was – upset, alright? I was blaming sorcery for your death, and I might have gotten a bit… overzealous."

"How many did you kill?" Merlin asked. The expression on Arthur's face was making it difficult to keep the righteous anger bubbling within him, but the thought of innocent people slaughtered at Arthur's hand was enough to get his blood boiling.

"I had one person executed about six months ago," Arthur said. His voice didn't sound ashamed, but he did look nervous as to Merlin's reaction.

"His crime?"

"The murder of four young women from the lower town," Arthur said coldly. "Yes, he used sorcery to do it, and at the time I thought that made his crime worse, but the point still stands that the man deserved a hanging, sorcerer or no."

Merlin was silent for a moment, mulling this over. "And… no one else?"

"No," Arthur said. "No one else." The warlock looked at the king and nodded once, accepting that. He made for the door again, his mind whirring, but Arthur spoke once more.

"Merlin."

"Yes?" he responded, without turning around.

"This place wasn't the same without you."

Merlin turned to look at Arthur. His eyes were dark and serious. "I'm sorry," he said finally. He came forward and then hesitantly reached forward and pulled Arthur into another hug, which the king returned gratefully.

"I'm the one who should be sorry," Arthur said awkwardly as Merlin pulled back again. "I've been a real… well, a real prat since you've been gone. I think I need you around to keep me in line."

Merlin chuckled slightly. "That's for sure."

"We have a lot to discuss. I want to know who did all of this, and why, and what's going to happen next, but for now, I have an execution to stop."

A wide grin split Merlin's face. "Good. You're doing the right thing."

"I know," Arthur said. "And another thing – I noticed you didn't give Gwen and I an answer about Zoe."

Merlin felt his face flush suddenly. "I haven't even met her yet!"

"So you won't be godfather?" Arthur asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I – I – you seriously trust me with that?"

Arthur smiled, clapping Merlin on the shoulder and steering him towards the door. He had to go and announce that the execution was off, and deal with the nobles who would be wondering why he was changing his mind _again_ concerning his policy on magic. Then there would be Lords Samuel and Phineas to deal with, the threat of the sorcerer who had kept Merlin from them for a year, and many confused sorcerers throughout Camelot wondering whether the reward for their magic would be death or acceptance. But for now, he Arthur had his friend back, and that seemed enough.

"I'd trust you with anything, Merlin."

* * *

**Author's Note: Such a fun chapter to write!**


	30. Chapter 30

**Author's Note: Sorry it's taken me so long. This story still has a bit to go... there are still some issues to resolve. Let me know how you like it so far!**

* * *

The next few days were some of the happiest and busiest of Merlin's life. He heard all about everyone's lives for the past year, still trying to come to terms with the odd gap in his own timeline. He told them about Tabor and the caves, and his crazy, zealous determination to make Emrys lead his people to a magical Camelot.

Arthur told his Lords what had happened, using relatively simple terms to explain a very complex situation. Lord Samuel was most displeased at Merlin's return, and at Arthur's decision to once again legalize magic in Camelot. Merlin and Gaius spent hours theorizing about what Tabor had done, and what he might do next, while the king refused to let his friend out of his sight for any significant length of time.

When Merlin wasn't within view of Arthur, the young king felt his chest tighten in panic, and the thoughts of those long and empty days would return to him – thoughts of loneliness and guilt, despair and frustration. Merlin was greeted in the hallways with happy smiles by people he barely knew, and even the knights and lords who used to torment him weren't messing with him anymore.

"Why do you think that is?" Merlin asked one day as he, Gaius, Arthur, and Gwen were all talking in Gaius's chambers.

"They're terrified of you, Merlin," Gaius said, a smile creeping into his voice. "Samuel and all the rest. Sorcery has always been scary to them, but now you're powerful enough to return from the dead. They're probably afraid if they try and hurt you, you'll turn them into toads, or even kill them on the spot."

Merlin smiled wryly at the thought of Lord Samuel in toad form, and looked down at the sleeping bundle in his arms. Zoe was the perfect mix of Arthur and Guinevere – she had the dark skin and curly black hair of her mother, and Arthur's bright blue eyes. Merlin had set eyes on her for the first time on the day of his return, and had fallen instantly for the sweet creature. Now, he spent nearly as much time with her as either of the girl's parents.

"How are the lords handling the news about sorcery?" Gaius asked, wondering about the meeting that Arthur had just attended.

"Lord Orwick was thrilled," Arthur said, smiling. "And most of the others seemed bewildered but accepting. Three guesses as to how Sam and Phineas took the news, however," he finished darkly, glancing at Merlin and raising his eyebrows.

"They're going to have to deal with the fact that I've returned," Merlin said testily. He would not be forgetting any time soon the behavior of those lords and their followers from back before his absence.

"You should have seen the look on Samuel's face when he found out you were – dead," Arthur said, hesitating before the word. A flash of pain covered his features briefly, but he hid it well. "He looked _smug_, like your death was something he'd always wanted more than anything. I very nearly punched him." Arthur smiled grimly, savoring the thought.

"Well, I'm guessing he didn't look so smug when I returned," Merlin said, voice tight with anger.

"And do you know who's been acting very strange?" Gwen said, looking between Arthur and Merlin. "Lord Phineas. I saw his face when you announced that Merlin had returned."

"And?" Merlin said curiously.

"Well, he seemed… pleased."

"What?" Arthur and Merlin said together. They shared a look. Before Gwen could elaborate, Zoe squawked slightly in Merlin's arm, squirming around as she woke. Merlin smiled down at her.

"Good morning, sleepy girl," he cooed. She blinked sleepily at him with her big blue eyes, and Arthur watched his friend with a smile on his face, happy to see the bond between Merlin and Zoe. When Merlin looked up and caught Arthur's eye, however, the king had arranged his face into a look of joking exasperation.

"_Mer_lin, don't be so selfish. She's my daughter, you know." Arthur leaned over and scooped Zoe out of Merlin's arms. The little girl squawked again at the unexpected disturbance, but then settled into her father's arms, waving her tiny hands in the air towards his face.

Gaius was watching the scene happily, but then he seemed to remember what Gwen had said about Phineas. He turned to the queen, his eyebrows lowered in confusion. "You say that Phineas looked pleased that Merlin was back?" Gaius prompted.

Gwen tore her eyes away from Merlin and Arthur, who were both leaning over the giggling Zoe with twin looks of adoration on their faces. With seeming reluctance, the two young men also turned away from the sight to listen to Gwen's response.

"Yes. At first. But then… it was weird, Arthur… it was like he was happy to see Merlin back, but upset that _you_ seemed happy about it."

Gwen glanced at Merlin. "No offense, Merlin, but it just doesn't make sense to me that Phineas would be glad to see you back in Camelot."

Merlin's eyebrows scrunched together as he thought. "No, it certainly is suspicious."

Arthur cleared his throat, glancing around at the three other people in the room as he cradled his daughter in his arms. "Be that as it may, there's nothing he can do about any of it, no matter _how_ he might feel. Samuel, Phineas, Timothy, Reagan… all of them. They're terrified of Merlin, like you said, Gaius."

These words seemed reassuring, but Merlin was still pondering Phineas' strange behavior several days later, as he sat in the tavern with Gwaine, Percival, and Elyan, discussing the events of Camelot.

The four friends were laughing and having a good time. Merlin felt his relief at being home, and the round table knights were all happy to see Merlin again. Camelot had been a much darker place without him. It was while sitting around in the tavern that the news arrived, in the form of a very scared looking Corwin.

"M-merlin!" he stammered, stumbling forward to the table where the men were sitting.

"Corwin? What's going on?" Merlin asked, feeling fear bubble up inside of him. One disaster after another. Would it ever end?

"I was up in the castle and… and I saw them!"

"Saw who?"

Corwin glanced around the room surreptitiously, and then lowered his voice. "These… these men and women, wearing dark black cloaks. They were using magic!"

Merlin stared in consternation at the young boy. "Using magic to do what?" he finally prompted when Corwin said nothing.

"I was hiding behind a tapestry, because I heard people yelling and loud noises – I heard one of them tell the others to spread out and incapacitate the guards, while he himself was going to the king!"

Merlin was still frozen, trying to let this information sink into his mind. It was Gwaine who snapped him out of it – "Merlin, Arthur's in danger!"

Suddenly, they were all up and running.

* * *

**Author's Note: Three guesses who... :)**


	31. Chapter 31

**Author's Note: I suck for taking so long! My apologies! Hope you enjoy.**

* * *

Merlin ran, feeling panic swell his throat closed. The men in dark cloaks could only be Tabor and his men, and right now they were headed for Arthur. Clearly, they had grown tired of their failed plans. If Emrys would not join them of his own free will, then maybe he would join them once he had nothing else to live for.

_Gwen. Zoe. Arthur._ The names kept circling Merlin's mind as he ran, with Corwin, Gwaine, Percival, and Elyan all running beside him. As they ran into the castle, Merlin could hear the sounds of swords clashing and spells being shouted by sorcerers.

"This way!" he called, making his way for the throne room. He knew Arthur would be there listening to the problems of the commoners at this time of the day. The worst part is that Gwen and Zoe would probably also be in attendance. The people liked to see the Pendragon family in its entirety when they came up from the surrounding villages to speak to their king.

The group skidded into a hallway to find two sorcerers blocking their way. Merlin recognized them both from his time in the caves, but Tabor was not there. With no time for asking questions, Merlin spoke ancient words and through his hands out, sending both of the men flying into the walls before Gwaine or the others could even unsheathe their weapons.

"Nice one, Merlin!" Elyan said, grim awe in his tone. But that was when things went very wrong –

Out of nowhere, he felt a hand grab him. He went to turn and combat his assailant with magic, but the face of his attacker was such a shock to him that he actually froze for a moment, giving another man just the amount of time he needed to shoat a spell, effectively locking Merlin's arms and legs in place. He knew the spell was temporary and could already feel his magic rising to the surface to combat its effects, but he was being dragged down the hall quickly.

Percival noticed and got the attention of the other knights, but Merlin shook his head, the only part of him that still seemed partially mobil. "Get to Arthur!" he said sluggishly. His tongue wasn't working right, and as he tried to utter a spell to release himself, he felt a large, smooth hand cover his mouth tightly. He could not resist.

_Please. Please get to Arthur,_ he thought to himself helplessly. Merlin would need time to make his escape, and time was one thing that the king, his wife, and his child did not have all that much of.

The sounds of the fighting near the throne room died away, and Merlin suddenly found himself tossed carelessly to the ground in a small chamber used by the serving maids from the kitchen that stayed in Camelot overnight on occasion. The room was by the kitchen, far enough away from the sounds of fighting that Merlin could hardly hear it.

"You," he spat in anger at his assailant. There were two men in the room in front of him. One of them was a man called Brant, who had served Merlin food during his stay in the caves. Brant leaned down to clasp shackles around Merlin's wrists. The other man in the room was Lord Phineas.

"Yes. Me," Phineas said snidely. Merlin pulled on the shackles and realized with despair that they had been enchanted. They locked his magic within himself, making any trick of sorcery he might attempt completely useless. He wouldn't be doing any magic unless someone let him out of here.

Given the circumstances, that seemed unlikely.

"You're working for Tabor?" Merlin said uncertainly. His mind was still processing what seemed totally impossible.

"You could say that," the pompous lord said back, making sure the door was closed firmly.

"But… but all the things you've done to me! All the time you and Lord Samuel insulted me… hurt me… how could you do that if you think I'm supposed to lead you?"

Phineas turned around, a wry smile making his face into a grotesque mask of self-satisfied importance. "Tabor and I agree about certain things. His goal is the same as mine – we both wish for a Camelot free of the Pendragon rule."

Merlin scowled, struggling against his shackles. His magic was fighting against its restrictions as well, but he could tell that it was useless. Phineas continued talking, pacing the small room while Brant stood subserviently by the door, silent. "But Tabor seems to see you as the Emrys of legend. I have never been naïve enough to think that a man of such awesome power could be _you_. He worships who he thinks you are, but I see the truth, _Emrys_." He spat the word like a curse.

"So… what exactly is the plan now?" Merlin seethed. All he could think to do was keep Phineas talking while he worked out how to break from his bonds. None of this was making any sense to him, but he did his best to keep his mind clear and think of his friends – _Arthur. Gwen. Zoe. If anything happens to them…_

"Isn't that obvious?" Phineas said cruelly. "I sent one of Tabor's people back to him once you returned to Camelot. The girl – Clara – reported to Tabor that King Arthur had welcomed magic once more in his realm upon your return. Tabor was most displeased."

"That doesn't make any _sense_!" Merlin spat in anger. "If Tabor wants a Camelot free of persecution, then he can _have_ it! Arthur's already given it to him!"

"Tabor does not want a man such as Arthur Pendragon ruling over him, and I cannot say that I blame him. We may have differing opinions as to _your_ worth, but we both agree that the king needs to go."

"So, what now?" Merlin demanded. His wrists were chafing from the tight clasps of the shackles.

"Now, Tabor tries a different tactic. If you will not join him of your own free will, perhaps you'll turn to him when there's no one else left."

Merlin felt his heart stop and his throat close up. It took him several moments to respond, and when he did, his voice was shaking. "And that means?"

Phineas looked at him as if pleased to be the bearer of such terrible news. "That means that Tabor and his men are going to kill Arthur."

It had been obvious, of course, but hearing the words ripped an unwilling response from Merlin's throat. "_No!_"

"And they'll kill the king's family, too, just for good measure." With that ominous statement, Phineas nodded to Brant, who opened the door for him. Phineas left, and Brant followed, pausing only to gag Merlin to prevent his calling for help.

Merlin was helpless. Emrys was furious.

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**Author's Note: Reviews are always welcome!**


	32. Chapter 32

**Author's Note: I don't deserve such wonderful readers! I'm so sorry for keeping you waiting. Hope you enjoy!**

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Arthur was swinging his sword towards the first attacker before he was really sure what was going on. All he knew was that there was chaos – screaming and swords clashing and ancient words and magic everywhere. He fought off one of the men quickly, but without any sort of magical protection, he didn't know how long he and the few lords with him were going to last.

The worst part of this – Gwen and Zoe were in the room.

"Where the hell is Merlin?" Arthur growled angrily. He couldn't believe that the sorcerer wasn't here – it was the first time in Arthur's memory that Merlin hadn't been present when he was truly needed.

Gwaine, who had just entered the room with a group of knights, responded to Arthur as he ducked to avoid a spell shot in his direction. "They took him!"

Arthur felt more panic carve its way through him with burning insistence. "Who took him?" he asked Gwaine, trying to strike out at one of the sorcerers but finding himself unable.

"Phineas!" Gwaine growled in way of response. The name was so unexpected that Arthur actually froze for a moment, and if Gwaine hadn't reached forward and tugged him aside, he would have been hit by a blast from one of the sorcerers in the room. Only a few feet behind him, Guinevere stood, protecting Zoe as best as she could with her arms alone. Elyan had taken up a fierce stance of protection in front of his sister and niece, but how much could any of them do without magic?

Unless Merlin somehow came in time, the future was looking very grim indeed.

* * *

Merlin was alone, with a coarse cloth covering his mouth and his hands chained behind him. Helplessly, he tried to struggle against his bonds. Initially he had thought them hopeless, but whoever had enchanted the shackles hadn't been all that powerful, and after a few tense minutes, Merlin felt his magic start to work against the bonds.

However, it was a slow process – fettered as he was, the sorcerer who had placed the enchantment had a clear advantage. In that moment he wished he could have called to Kilgharrah, but he saw no way that the massive dragon would ever be able to come to his aid inside the narrow halls of the castle.

His magic was growing in strength against his bonds, but he felt a frightening feeling in his chest – even if he could break out of here soon, he might already be too late to do anything.

_Stop that_, he told himself sternly. If he started wondering what was going on out there… if he thought about Arthur defending himself against sorcerers, _alone_ –

"Damn it!" Merlin yelled into the gag, and the words came out as nothing more than a muffled groan. Magic more powerful than he knew how to harness was streaming through his body. He could feel the chains loosening their hold on him, but it still wasn't happening fast enough.

At that moment, the door suddenly swung open, revealing a scared and vaguely familiar girl in the doorframe. She rushed forward and pulled a key out of a pocket among her skirts.

"Emrys," she said softly as she undid the gag around his mouth. Merlin suddenly recognized her as the girl Clara from the caves. She had been the one to stage Merlin's death using his horse and his supplies. Merlin had learned this a few days after his return to Camelot, as he and Arthur discussed all that had happened during the long year that had separated the two friends.

Clara darted around behind Merlin, and, with shaking hands, made to undo the shackles.

"Why are you doing this?" he asked her, grateful but suspicious.

"Tabor has been my teacher and friend for a long while, but he is wrong to hurt you like this. He is also foolish to believe that you will join us after we are responsible for the death of the king."

"You're a lot smarter than he is," Merlin said as the chains fell away from his arms. He made for the door, looking back at the girl kneeling on the floor. "I thank you for this. When it's all over, I'll tell Arthur what you've done for me."

Clara smiled timidly at the man she had heard so many things about, and then Merlin was gone, running swiftly down the halls and towards the throne room.

_If I'm too late…_ Merlin's thought, feeling ice creeping through his veins. He ran faster.

* * *

They were fighting a losing battle. Arthur knew this, but he could do nothing but keep fighting. The knights and lords still standing in the room had formed a line of protection in front of Gwen and Zoe, and Arthur felt a rush of gratitude and respect for the men around him. Orwick and many of the other lords were holding their own, despite the fact that many of them were getting on in years. Even Samuel was fighting against the sorcerers, though Arthur would have bet anything that self-preservation was the only thing on the pompous man's mind.

A dozen or so of his knights were also still in the fight, including Percival, Leon, and Elyan. Just seconds earlier, a spell had hit a very fierce Gwaine in the stomach, and he had toppled to the ground, still. Arthur hadn't had the opportunity to check on him amongst the chaos of battle, but continually sent worried glances in his fallen friend's direction, and was relieved to see the knight roll over, groaning in pain, but very much alive.

And Merlin? Arthur was anxious for his friend for more than one reason – For one, there was the obvious – what if Phineas or another of Tabor's men were hurting him? From what he understood, Merlin was a very powerful sorcerer, but if enough men were to fight against him, then perhaps his magic alone couldn't defend him. The other reason was a bit more selfish. Having an all-powerful sorcerer for a manservant was something that had been a source of alarm for Arthur when he had first learned the truth, of course, but very quickly it had become a comfort. Now, during the first magical threat since Merlin had revealed his magic, the warlock was conspicuously absent from the scene.

He heard a grunt of pain behind him and watched as one of his knights keeled over, and then a yell of surprise as Orwick collapsed beside him. They were losing. There was no getting around that. It was only a matter of time before they were done for. The desperation was growing in Arthur's mind, but suddenly the door burst open, and the one face that Arthur most wanted to see appeared in the open doorway.

Arthur gasped at the look of raw fury and power on his best friend's face and knew instantly that this was not merely Merlin standing in front of him.

Emrys had arrived.

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**Author's Note: Yay for BAMF!Merlin. :)**


	33. Chapter 33

**Author's Note: Not that it really matters all that much, but I just want to say thank you to TheImpossiblePen! This is the first story I've ever written that's made it to 300 reviews and you were the one to turn in the 300th! Also, of course, thank you to everyone else who has been reviewing. You guys are the best! Again, sorry for the wait.**

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The entire room froze for a moment when Merlin entered the room, and then Tabor and all of his men turned to face him, their faces determined.

"All of you," Merlin said, his voice dangerously low. "Will leave. _Now_."

Nobody responded to this request, although Merlin did notice a few of Tabor's sorcerers shuffle nervously where they stood. "Arthur," Merlin said, trying very hard to keep his voice calm. "Are you alright?"

Arthur blinked slightly at the fierceness of Merlin's voice but then nodded slightly. Merlin's eyes swept the room and alighted on Gwaine. "Gwaine?"

The knight on the floor moaned slightly but then opened his eyes. "About time you showed up," he grumbled.

Merlin's mouth twitched into the slightest of smiles, but then flattened again to a look of raw fury. Quickly, he crossed the room, shoving the still frozen sorcerers aside to stand protectively in front of his king.

"I'll say it again – get _out_, before I make you."

Tabor responded, his voice coated with false subservience and maybe the slightest hint of fear. "Emrys, surely you see that you're outnumbered – "

Merlin raised his hands wordlessly and sent a blast of concentrated power directly at Tabor, who managed to avoid it only by diving awkwardly away and landing with a heavy thud on the floor. Merlin was tired of listening to this man talk his way out of things. Now was the time for action.

Tabor got to the floor angrily and swept his arm around at his other sorcerers. "Enough of this. We take Emrys by force!" With that, several spells started shooting around the room at once. Several were aimed at Merlin himself, but he saw a few head in Gwen's direction, and one of the woman sorcerers even tried to finish off Gwaine, who still hadn't managed to regain his footing.

Merlin's hands shot straight up in in the air and his magic exploded out of him, absorbing all of the sorcerer's spells. In the next instant, the other men in the room had all rejoined the fight, and Merlin was suddenly in high demand. He kept up shields around the lords and knights as best as he could, but his attention was divided between many targets. With all of the defense he was forced to participate in, he hadn't yet managed any offense. That changed when another man entered the room.

Phineas looked livid as he burst through the doorway, and Merlin could only suppose that he had discovered that Merlin was missing. The sight of the traitorous lord caused both Arthur and Merlin to curse loudly in unison.

Arthur made to dart forward but Merlin stopped him, simultaneously blasting one of the sorcerers against the wall as the man attempted to sneak up behind Elyan. "He's mine," Merlin gasped in anger.

"Don't kill him," Arthur growled, ducking and pushing Merlin out of the way of one of Tabor's spells.

"_What?" _Merlin responded, reciprocating by jumping in front of Arthur and throwing up a shield in time to defend him from another blast of magic. Even amidst all of the chaos it was good to be fighting as equals – _for once_, the selfish part of Merlin's mind thought, _you'll be getting the credit for saving Arthur's life. _

"I want Phineas alive," Arthur grumbled as his sword clashed against that of one of the sorcerers. Most of the magic-wielders in the room could certainly use magic to supplement their skills with a blade, but only Merlin, Tabor, and perhaps a few handful of the others were strong enough to kill using magic alone. "He's going to pay for what he's done, and he can't do that if he's dead."

Merlin gave a sharp nod and ran full-tilt towards Phineas, who had entered the fray and was now battling Leon with both his sword and a few helpful hints of magic to strengthen his own skill with the blade. As Merlin ran, he threw two of the sorcerers in his way against the walls, watching them crumple to unconscious heaps against the floor. _Two down_. He'd counted his enemies as he'd entered the room and knew that their total came to nearly forty men. _Dozens to go_.

One of the sorcerers tried to stand against him as he made his way towards Phineas, but Merlin carelessly threw his hand out towards the scared looking young man, sending him flying across the room to join his unconscious companions.

He approached the traitorous lord with barely suppressed anger flooding through him.

"How did you escape?" Phineas snarled, as Merlin pushed past Leon and took a stance against him. Leon turned and immediately engaged another of the sorcerers, while Merlin, not in the mood for a chat, immediately sent a powerful blast of magic directly at Phineas.

With no small effort, Phineas blocked it, looking rather frightened now by the look on Merlin's face. "Emrys – " he started.

"Shut up," Merlin yelled quite suddenly. The entire room heard him and all hesitated for a moment, before the fighting continued. Just looking at Phineas and knowing what this man had done made the anger bubble up inside Merlin. He glanced at Tabor, who was still advancing on Arthur, Gwen, and Zoe, and suddenly there was no more thinking to be done.

Later, Merlin couldn't remember if he had actually uttered a spell, or whether the magic had just taken over the moment. All he knew was that suddenly his heart was pounding and power was surging through him like never before – like a blast of cool, pure, air, the magic exploded out of him and swept across the entire throne room. So powerful was the magic that Merlin felt his knees buckle under him for a moment, and spots appeared in his vision. For a moment, everything went black.

The next thing Merlin knew, Arthur was pulling him into a seated position. "Merlin?"

"What – happened?" he asked, looking around the room. "Woah! What the hell _happened_?" he repeated with shock. The room was littered with the unconscious bodies of Tabor, Phineas, and the other sorcerers in the room.

He glanced up and saw he was surrounded by a whole crowd of people. Arthur was crouched by his side, with Gwen seated on the other side with a squawking Zoe in her arms. Percival was standing and supporting Gwaine, while Leon and Elyan were leaning over slightly to stare at Merlin, who was on the floor with no real memory of how he had ended up there.

"Well," Arthur said wryly. "We were hoping you could tell us that."

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**Author's Note: Thanks!**


	34. Chapter 34

**Author's Note: I suck! Sorry this took so long... Anyways, it looks like after this we've only got an epilogue to go! Thanks for sticking with me!**

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It took Merlin several minutes to get his bearings. During that time, Arthur and Elyan both helped him up into one of the chairs that had somehow remained standing during the fight. Meanwhile, Gwen was tending to a wailing Zoe and Percival was looking over Gwaine's injuries with surprisingly gentle hands for a man of his size. Gaius had been summoned to look over the other men in the room, and he was doing his rounds silently. Luckily, none of Arthur's men had been severely injured.

The other men in the room were half-dragging, half-carrying all of the unconscious sorcerers down the stairs and into the dungeons. Before Camelot had known of Merlin's sorcery, this would have been a fairly useless act, but after Merlin had told the truth, one of his first public acts had been to enchant the dungeon cells to make escape with magic that much more difficult.

"You knocked them all out," Elyan was saying, awestruck. Merlin glanced around the room slowly.

"Yeah, I – guess I did," he muttered.

"What – _how_? And why didn't you just do that when they had you captured before?" Arthur said.

"The cave was blocking my powers, remember?" Merlin said. His head was pounding. He knew what had just happened and he wasn't so inclined to tell the king about it, but he could tell from the way Arthur was looking at him that he wasn't going to be able to get around it.

"Merlin, what exactly happened? All of a sudden every sorcerer in this room just… collapsed. And you did, too. You really – I mean, that is to say, I was scared – _concerned_, I guess. To see you… just suddenly…" Arthur trailed off. If the situation hadn't been so serious, Merlin would have laughed aloud to hear how difficult it was, even now, for Arthur to express worry for his friend.

"I – unleashed my magic at them," Merlin said. "It's not exactly a spell. More than anything, it's… uh…"

"What?" Arthur prompted.

"I wasn't in control," he finally murmured. Merlin was looking down, somewhat ashamed, when Gaius approached, having finished examining the injured men.

"Sire," the physician said. Arthur looked up from Merlin.

"How is everyone?"

Gaius smiled wearily. "A few nasty spells, but between Merlin's magic and my medicine everyone should be put to straights in no time."

"That's good news," Arthur said, and then turned back to Merlin, waiting for him to finish his explanation. When nothing seemed forthcoming, Arthur was about to speak, but Gaius beat him to it.

"That was an awfully powerful spell, Merlin." Gaius's voice held a hint of a reprimand in it, like he knew something that Arthur didn't.

"Sorry," Merlin mumbled to Gaius, looking chagrined.

"_What_ are you two on about?" Arthur demanded. His voice was touched with a bit of anger to hide the concern brewing under the surface.

Merlin sighed and turned to Arthur. "I lost control of my magic. I had it channeled enough that there was really no danger of hurting anyone that I didn't want hurt, but…" Merlin ducked his head and scratched a hand along the back of his hair.

"But?" Arthur said, leaning a bit closer to Merlin. The king's hand was hovering about the warlock's shoulder, unsure of what to do.

"But the vessel of magic like that – when… when someone loses control of that much raw power, the vessel can sometimes be torn apart."

Merlin sounded scared and more than a little anxious to see Arthur's reaction to this. By this time, Gwen had come over and kneeled beside her husband and Merlin, still carrying Zoe in her arms. Gaius and Elyan were also close enough to listen.

"What vessel? Merlin, what are you talking about?" Arthur asked. Gwen gasped quietly from behind Arthur's shoulder. She had seen something in Merlin's eyes that had caused her to understand. When nobody else seemed willing to say it, Gwen spoke.

"You're the vessel?" she asked gently.

Merlin hadn't even opened his mouth to reply, but Arthur saw the confirmation in his eyes.

"_What?_ Are you saying that you could have – that what you did was – _you could have been killed!_" Arthur yelled, his voice rising as he spoke until he was standing menacingly above Merlin. The rest of the room froze in their acts of cleaning up the throne room to stare at the spectacle.

"Arthur," Merlin hissed, standing as well. "Keep your voice down."

The king glanced around and seemed to notice where they were. His face flushed with anger, he pulled on the cuff of Merlin's shirt and began dragging him out of the room, muttering under his breath. The others all watched them go, instinctively understanding that this was a conversation that the two of them needed to have alone.

When they reached Arthur's chambers, neither spoke for a long while. Then –

"Well? Explain yourself."

Merlin sighed at the edge of raw anger in Arthur's voice. "It wasn't like I did it on purpose. I was just… so… _angry_. Those people were threatening everything I care about and I couldn't stand for it."

Arthur was silent, and then he sat down heavily on the edge of the bed. Merlin was leaning against the closed door, waiting for a response.

"And you could have – ripped yourself apart."

"Possibly literally, yes," Merlin said. "And then again it could have affected me in another way. I could have simply gone mad, or lost my memories, or I could have even just collapsed and never woken up – "

"_Stop_," Arthur growled. "I get the idea."

"S-sorry," Merlin said, somewhat shocked by the expression of pain on Arthur's face.

"Look, I – " Arthur started, and then stopped, trying to decide. Finally, he spoke, the words coming out quickly. He was looking at his hands and refused to meet Merlin's gaze. "I've already lost you once, alright? And it was the worst thing that's ever happened to me. I know that sounds crazy, but it's true. I don't have any idea how to be king without your help."

Merlin looked down, feeling his own face flush. "You'd be a great king whether I was here or not."

Arthur shook his head, chuckling without humor. "I'm not at all sure about that. I can't imagine Camelot without you."

There was silence for a moment, and then Merlin stood up straight. "Well, don't worry. I'll never make you find out."

Arthur looked up and smiled slightly. "Promise?"

Merlin shrugged. "As long as you keep yourself out of trouble, then I'll stay safe, too, deal?"

At this, Arthur laughed, standing to open the door to his chambers. "Deal. Let's go join the others, shall we? They're probably worried that I've managed to hurt you in my murderous rage."

"Are you kidding? They're probably scared I've turned you into a toad or a rooster or something."

"There's no way you'd be able!"

"Wanna bet?"

"Merlin, you are _such_ an idiot."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Well, you, Arthur, are a pig-headed pompous prat, did you know that?"

"Alliteration. Nice."

"Idiot."

"Clot-pole."

"I _taught_ you that one, Arthur! You can't use it against me!"

The king and the warlock continued their bickering all the way back to the throne room.

It was almost like old times.

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**Author's Note: Thank you!**


	35. Epilogue

**Author's Note: Oh my goodness. ****First off, I'm so sorry about taking forever. Life took over there for a minute! Secondly, I can't believe it, but this is the end! The epilogue! I have had this idea since the beginning, and I am slightly nervous as to what you will think of it. It sets it up for a tantalizing idea for another installment in the series, but it's definitely not required. What was your favorite moment of Destiny? Or Connected? THANK YOU A MILLION FOR ALL OF YOUR SUPPORT!**

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It had taken many days to interview with each of the sorcerers involved. Most, Arthur had agreed to simply banish, upon pain of death if any tried to return to Camelot again. It was a threat that they would never have to carry out – each of the men and women were interviewed by Arthur and Merlin together, and every one of them had paled and cowered in immense fear at the sight of Emrys. After his display in the throne room, none were willing to cross him again.

There were a few unique cases – Merlin told Arthur of Clara's bravery, and she was issued a pardon, though Arthur had been more than a little angry at the thought of letting the woman who had brought the news of Merlin's death to him off completely free.

Phineas was set for a lifetime of imprisonment, since Merlin had begged for clemency regarding his life, and Arthur had reluctantly agreed. The men who had spent so long tormenting Merlin were also spoken to – Timothy, Reagan, and most of all Samuel. Each of them swore they knew nothing of Phineas' true allegiance and all three were given a warning – any hint of violence or one wrong word about Merlin, and they'd be joining Phineas in the dungeons.

And lastly - the sinister platform was wheeled out into the courtyard once more, and though Merlin could hardly bear to watch, he stood beside Arthur, Gwen, Gaius, and several knights and advisers while a crowd of townsfolk looked on below. Tabor took a long time to burn.

* * *

Amidst the none-too-pleasant task of administering justice to the wrongdoers, Merlin continued to recover his strength from his display of magic. Gaius had foul-smelling potions for him to swallow down and after a few days, he seemed nearly back to his old self again, although he wasn't up to any terrific displays of magic quite yet.

He found he was happiest with Gaius, Gwen, and the knights, and of course Arthur. Being alone made him think dark thoughts of all that had happened in the past few months – or the past year, if the time difference was to be accounted for. As the months passed, it became easier to look back on those times as unpleasant memories and nothing more.

It was one morning sitting in Arthur's chambers with the king and queen that another shock awaited them.

"You're lucky you've got me around, Zoe," Merlin said, bouncing the baby on his knees. "Your father has got to be one of the most _clueless _human beings I've ever seen."

"Hey!" Arthur growled, reaching forward and snatching Zoe away. "Don't listen to him, Zoe," Arthur cooed gently. "He's useless."

Gwen rolled her eyes. "At this rate, Zoe's first memory is going to be the two of you bickering. And besides, she could be saying her first words any day now! I'll string you both up by your ears if you accidentally train my daughter to say _prat_, or _idiot_, or something else."

"And yet you sit here and threaten us!" Merlin said, while Arthur sniffed indignantly.

"C'mere," Gwen said to Zoe, lifting her out of Arthur's arms. Zoe, for her part, did not seem to mind being passed around among the three of them. She had spent many a day in this manner – Merlin was always busy at the same times as Arthur, and Zoe would stay with one of Gwen's maids, Gaius, or Gwen, if she wasn't also occupied. Whenever the three of them had time off, they spent it together, fighting over time spent with Zoe.

"I'm sure she's not going to learn _idiot_ before she learns mother or father," Arthur said grumpily, crossing his arms.

"'Prat' is an easy enough word though," Merlin observed shrewdly.

"_Mer_lin," Arthur growled in warning. He reached for a goblet on the desk between them and made to throw it, but Merlin spoke a quick spell, sending the goblet flying above Arthur's reach.

Before Arthur could chastise him, Zoe giggled in her mother's arms and repeated the spell that Merlin had just uttered. The goblet flew slightly higher.

Arthur, Merlin, and Gwen all turned to stare at Zoe with looks of shock frozen on their faces.

"Did – did she just – " Merlin started, feeling a bewildered grin start to creep up on his face.

Gwen grimaced and grabbed a pillow from the bed, throwing it straight at Merlin's face. It hit him with a thwack.

Well, then. Princess Zoe the sorceress. _That_ was going to be interesting.

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**Author's Note: This might not fit with the way magic is supposed to work... is it usually a hereditary thing? Nevertheless, the show doesn't give us a canon answer to this question, so I decided to go with my version. Thanks again for taking the time to read my stories! If you haven't already, check out my two Merlin one-shots and my Merlin 5-chapter piece on my profile! Much love!**


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